LONDON aEUR: On Thursday, Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, resigned from his position as leader of The Conservative Party. He stated that he would remain as prime minister until the party chooses a new leader.
The country will not have to go to the polls again, considering that the Conservative Party won last year’s election by a wide margin. Instead, next week, a select group of Conservative legislators in Parliament aEUR”, known as the 1922 Committee aEUR”, will decide the rules for a new leadership contest. This will allow Johnson to be replaced from the roughly 350 Conservative lawmakers.
The winner of the contest by the Conservative Party will become the next prime minister of the United Kingdom under the parliamentary system.
Johnson was the clear leader in the 2019 similar process. Already, some of Johnson’s longtime friends and foes have expressed interest in running for the top political office in the country.
These are some of the people who, based on popularity or expressions of interest, could aEUR”, compete to be the next British prime Minister in the coming weeks and months:
Sunak was the chancellor at the Exchequer aEUR”, Britain’s second-most senior political office. He also oversees the treasury aEUR”. His decision Tuesday night to resign prompted a series of resignations from government. Johnson announced that he would be stepping down as the leader of the Conservative Party. He was a former investment banker and was first elected to the British Parliament in 2015. His popularity among the British public during the coronavirus epidemic soared as his treasury division announced a number of policies that provided financial support for many people. His popularity quickly rose to that of Johnson. However, a scandal over the tax affairs of his wife and a criminal conviction for violating lockdown rules tarnished his reputation as an operator.
Javid, a former chief of Treasury and, up until recently, the country’s health secretary, resigned Tuesday night. This also precipitated the Cabinet rebellion that saw Johnson resign as Conservative leader. He was a trader at Deutsche Bank and Chase Manhattan Investment Banks, and was elected to Parliament in 2010. After Theresa May, the previous Prime Minister, resigned in the middle of a long and painful legislative battle over Brexit, Javid contested Johnson for the Conservative leadership. He was his finance minister and clashed with Johnson about Johnson’s right to select his own advisers. After another scandal involving ministers, he returned to the government in 2021. He criticized Johnson’s leadership in Parliament this week, in a speech that many considered to be the starting gun for a new leadership campaign.
Wallace is a long-serving legislator that should be considered as a frontrunner. He is a former soldier who was elected to Parliament in 2005. His role as Britain’s defense Minister in supporting the Ukrainian military effort to resist Russian invasion this year has earned him plaudits. In the wake of Johnson’s failed leadership campaign, he has kept a low profile amid growing criticism. He was part of the troops that returned Princess Diana’s body from Paris after her 1997 death in a car accident. Although he has not yet indicated whether he will be participating in any leadership contests, he is often seen as a leading candidate by grassroots Conservative Party activists and supporters.
Braverman, the current attorney general has worked previously as a courtroom lawyer, better known in Britain as a Barrister. She was an expert on various topics, including personal injury and immigration law. Braverman also represented several government departments during courtroom litigation. She is proud to be a second-generation immigrant and has been a member of Parliament since 2015. During May’s premiership, she was appointed a minister in the Department for Exiting the European Union. After resigning from her position, she was regarded as a Brexit-hardliner and repeatedly voted against the EU Brexit agreements that May attempted to negotiate with her. In a Wednesday night television appearance, she became the first minister to publicly insist Johnson must resign. She also stated that she plans to run for the Conservative Party presidency in any future contest.
Hunt finished second to Johnson in the 2019 leadership election. He has been a strong presence outside of the administration, chairing Parliament’s Health Committee during the pandemic. This gave him an important and respected level of scrutiny for Johnson’s policies. Over a nearly ten-year career in British Cabinet, Hunt was previously the minister of culture and health. His reputation was damaged during his tenure in the role of health secretary, when he had to cut services and clashed with junior doctors. However, he recently published a book about patient safety in Britain’s National Health Service. Many Conservative colleagues consider him a safe choice for the party and country.
Media commentators and bookmakers also speculate about other Conservative politicians, including Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, her predecessor Dominic Raab, Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt and Nadhim Zahawi, Treasury chief, and member of Parliament Tom Tugendhat.
