Mr Kenneth Clarke has insisted the Conservative leadership contest is still "wide open" and that no-one knows for sure who is ahead in the battle to succeed Mr William Hague.
At the same time, the Europhile former chancellor has said he shares "the general eyebrow-raising reaction" to rival Mr Iain Duncan Smith's declared readiness to review the Tory party's policy position on laws governing cannabis use, and Section 28 - the legislation banning the "promotion" of homosexuality in schools.
Mr Duncan Smith's apparent U-turn - seen as an attempt to reach out to supporters of the defeated Mr Michael Portillo - prompted one party vice chairman, Mr Steve Norris, to suggest some Tories who had already voted for him might be asking to have their ballot papers returned.
It also prompted other supporters of Mr Clarke to speculate that the Thatcherite front-runner is not yet convinced that victory is "in the bag".
"No one has the first idea who is going to win," Mr Clarke maintained yesterday as he continued campaigning despite reports that a majority of Tory party members have already cast their votes.
Campaign managers for "IDS", meanwhile, sought to play down news of a telephone survey of members in Yorkshire, Kent and Staffordshire, suggesting that the result declared tomorrow week would show their man the victor with an astounding 80 to 20 per cent margin.