Rishi Sunak becomes the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak becomes the new leader of the British Conservative Party. He will automatically succeed Liz Truss as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. His only competitor, Penny Mordaunt, withdrew from the lead race at the last minute, British media reported. Mordaunt immediately expressed her support for Sunak.
In a first reaction, the leader of the Conservative Party says now is the time to unite and for all members to stand behind Sunak. “The time for internal discussions is now over. And I’m sure that under the leadership of Rishi Sunak we can tackle the problems of the Brits.”
Sunak, 42, who was born in Southampton (to his parents of Indian descent), is the first British Prime Minister to embrace Hinduism. He is also the first prime minister of color. King Charles is expected to appoint him Prime Minister tomorrow.
To be allowed to stand for leadership of the party, a candidate had to have the support of at least one hundred party members in the House of Commons before 3pm Dutch time. According to the BBC, Sunak had managed to get at least 193 Conservative MPs behind him.
His only rival, Conservative Party leader Penny Mordaunt, stalled on fewer than thirty statements of support. So she dropped out of the race just before 3 p.m.
Ex-Prime Minister Johnson withdrew from the party leadership battle yesterday, even before he had officially run for office. It was already clear that the path to prime minister was open to Sunak.
Sunak previously served as Treasury Secretary in the Johnson administration. His departure from the cabinet last summer heralded the fall of the prime minister after a series of scandals. Many party members still blame Sunak for this.
After Johnson’s resignation, Sunak attempted to become party leader but lost to Liz Truss. When she announced her departure on Thursday after weeks of political and financial crisis, Sunak was running for re-election.
The news site Politico speaks of the most amazing political comeback in recent history. September’s loser becomes October’s prime ministerthe BBC summarizes his return.
Source: NOS
I am David Miller, a highly experienced news reporter and author for 24 Instant News. I specialize in opinion pieces and have written extensively on current events, politics, social issues, and more. My writing has been featured in major publications such as The New York Times, The Guardian, and BBC News. I strive to be fair-minded while also producing thought-provoking content that encourages readers to engage with the topics I discuss.
