Michael Heseltine 2001

What if Heseltine had decided to stand for leader in 1997 after John Major resigned?
How would he had done?
And could he had been a real threat to Blair and Labour in the 2001 election?
 
What if Heseltine had decided to stand for leader in 1997 after John Major resigned?
How would he had done?
And could he had been a real threat to Blair and Labour in the 2001 election?

Every one of his rivals jerks a thumb at him and says: "CoughheartattackCough".
 
Ive been reading things about Hezza quite a bit recently, and I think the best opportunities he would have to become tory leader would be:

1. Thatcher stepping down of her own accord in 1989. He would have been by far the strongest candidate (Howe to bland, Hurd didn't really want it, Lawsons star had faded).

2. Him not challenging Thatcher in 1990, allowing thatcher to lead the tories into the 1991/92 election which they would almost certainly loe in some way or form under her leadership. A 1991/2 leadership election would mean facing strong opposition from Major and possibly Norman Lamont too, but without the accusations of "betraying" thatcher he would be in a much stronger political situation, and I think he could've won, it would be close though.

3. Major deciding to outright resign after the '95 leadership contest, he came damn close to it OTL. In a second round Hezza might well have stood (although by this point Ken Clarke was the stronger figure on the pro European wing of the party), had he won he would have faced an even more divided tory party, but Hezza was a stronger campaigner than Major, so perhaps the '97 defeat wouldn't have been quite as bad as OTL.
 
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