Tory leadership favourite Boris Johnson has secured the backing of a further two Kent MP as the battle to become the next PM enters its second day.

He now has the backing of four MPs in the county, more than any other candidate does.

Dover MP Charlie Elphicke said Mr Johnson was the right man for the job and had the best chance of lifting the party’s fortunes.

In a statement, the MP said he was "the person to unite the country and deliver a bright future."

He added: "Brexit will only be a success if it is seen as an opportunity to be grasped, not a crisis to be managed.”

“I have thought about it long and hard. For me Boris is the right person to deliver Brexit, seize the opportunities and take us forward to build a truly global Britain.”

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Boris also secured the backing of Sevenoaks MP Sir Michael Fallon, who said: "I worked in cabinet with Boris Johnson when he was Foreign Secretary and I was Defence Secretary.

"We need a leader who will keep Corbyn out of No10. Corbyn and McDonnell would take this country back to the 1970s."

Mr Mackinlay, a long-standing Brexiteer tweeted:

Meanwhile, Rochester and Strood MP Kelly Tolhurst is inviting views from her constituents in an online survey.

The contest has split the county’s MPs but Boris Johnson and Dominic Raab each have three pledges of support.

The ten leadership hopefuls are setting out various pledges on some of the key issues, including Brexit.

Favourite Boris Johnson chose to unveil a plan to cut income tax bills for people earning more than £50,000 a year.

There has also seen further scrutiny of Michael Gove after his admission that he had taken cocaine - a class A drug - several times when he was a journalist.

WATCH: Do voters forgive Michael Gove for admitting he previously took cocaine?

Mr Gove has been supported by the Tonbridge and Malling MP Tom Tugendhat, who confirmed he would continue to back the environment secretary, saying: "We need to judge people by the ideas they are bringing to the table today, not what they did 20 years ago."

He set out his manifesto with a pledge to scrap VAT but was forced to fend off renewed questions about his use of drugs.

He urged people to accept that everyone should be given a second chance.

There has been no support among the county's MPs for some candidates, including Angela Leadsom, Jonny Mercer and Sajid Javid.

The first elimination round takes place later this week, when the candidate with the fewest votes will drop out. MPs will choose the final two who will then take part in a run-off in which all party members will have a vote.

Who is backing who? Kent MPs who have declared are:

• Boris Johnson: Craig Mackinlay; Charlie Elphicke; Damian Collins; Sir Michael Fallon, Gordon Henderson
• Dominic Raab: Rehman Chishti; Helen Grant; Gareth Johnson (Update: Raab eliminated from the race on June 18)
• Matt Hancock: Damian Green; Tracey Crouch (Update: Hancock pulled out of the race on June 14.)
• Michael Gove: Tom Tugendhat
• Jeremy Hunt: Sir Roger Gale
• Adam Holloway (Gravesham)

Undeclared or not publicly said:

• Helen Whately (Faversham and Mid Kent) says that as vice chairman of the Conservative party she will not publicly endorse any of the candidates
• Kelly Tolhurst (Rochester and Strood)
• Greg Clark (Tunbridge Wells)

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