Who are the Conservative members who will decide the next prime minister?

Politics Explained: The Tory party refuses to release demographic details of its grassroots – but a few clues are available

Conservative MPs have performed their task – by whittling down the once 12-strong list of candidates for No 10 to just two – and now it is up to the Tory faithful.

So, who are these 160,000 grassroots members who, extraordinarily, amid the nation’s greatest crisis since Hitler was defeated, have the power to pick the prime minister who will lead us?

First, it is worth underlining just how eye-popping the situation is, the first time in history that the top job has been decided by party members, with MPs – let alone the general public – shut out.