Jonathan Gullis has been appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Tory Party this evening, months after Lee Anderson quit the role.
Lee Anderson quit the post in January over opposition to the Government's Rwanda Bill.
Anderson, alongside fellow Deputy Chairman Brendan Clarke-Smith, quit their roles to join more than 50 other Tory MPs backing an amendment to toughen up the immigration legislation.
Writing on social media this evening, Party chairman Richard Holden said: "Great to announce that the inimitable [Jonathan Gullis] is becoming one of our Conservatives Deputy Chairmen".
Jonathan Gullis has been appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Tory Party this evening, months after Lee Anderson quit the role
PA
He added: "The non-stop campaigning MP for Stoke On Trent North, Kidsgrove and Talke is a formidable addition to the team as we build to the General Election later this year".
The announcement came after Rishi Sunak conducted a mini-reshuffle of his Cabinet, following the resignation of two ministers this evening.
James Heappey confirmed his resignation as armed forces minister, while Robert Halfon quit as skills, apprenticeships and higher education minister.
Heappey, the Conservative MP for Wells, Somerset, earlier this month announced his intention to quit as an MP and to stand down as a minister before then.
Just one day after he called for 2.5 per cent of GDP to be "urgently" spent on defence, Heappey today warned that "the work isn’t done".
He added: "Ukraine needs our support now as much as ever. Perhaps even more so. Their’s is a fight for the future of Euro-Atlantic security and so we must continue to lead the world in the breadth & bravery of our support."
The double resignation is yet another blow to Sunak's authority, who is battling to retain the support of his MPs.
He conducted a mini reshuffle this evening, appointing Nus Ghani MP as the Minister for Europe and Leo Docherty as Armed Forces Minister.
Kevin Hollinrake was appointed a Minister of State in the Department for Business and Trade and Luke Hall was appointed as Education Minister.
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Anderson defected to Reform UK earlier this month, saying he is "prepared to gamble" on himself. Speaking at a press conference, the MP for Ashfield said he knows "how many people support Reform and what they have to say".
He added: "All I want is my country back."
His defection came weeks after he was suspended from the Tory party after claiming that "Islamists have got control of our country" and that Sadiq Khan has "given our capital city away to his mates."