They got to shortlist him, by eliminating candidates until just 2 remain. Then the choice is with the party membership. Which is not the same as voting for him.
That's for the shortlist. It's perfectly possible, albeit vanishingly unlikely that everyone preferred Hunt and the buffoon as second choice. Going on the party's difficulties the last three years it's perfectly likely he was second choice for a clear majority. The disjoint between MPs and membership seems to be becoming a chasm.