Mark Harper has been eliminated from the Tory leadership race and everyone is making the same joke

The results of the first round in the Tory leadership contest have been announced and its bad news for Esther McVey, Andrea Leadsom and Mark Harper.

All three MPs have been eliminated from the race having failed to receive enough votes to proceed to the next round, with McVey scoring the lowest of them all with just nine.

Boris Johnson, the favourite for the role, stormed ahead of the pack, racking up 114 votes, a considerable lead over Jeremy Hunt, who is finished in second place with 43.

McVey and Leadsom's departures from the contest are something of an upset as they were at least prominent Brexiteers and former cabinet members.

Harper though doesn't have quite the same status in the party, despite also being a former cabinet member and the former chief whip and voting to remain in the European Union.

His entry into the race raised eyebrows as a lot of people had no idea who he was.

Needless to say Mark's elimination from the leadership contest will barely even be noticed.

Still, it could have been worse...

Although he's probably regretting these campaign leaflets now.

More: Someone has re-imagined the Tory leadership candidates as terrifying pieces of taxidermy​