Sunak poised to become UK PM as Johnson drops comeback bid

London: After the resignation of Liz Truss last week, the governing party is choosing Britain’s third prime minister this year at a time of political turmoil and severe economic challenges.

British Conservative Rishi Sunak is poised to become prime minister and the country's first leader of colour, after a dramatic decision by Boris Johnson to abandon an audacious political comeback.

Just weeks after failing in a first attempt to lead the ruling Tories, Sunak could cap a stunning reversal in fortunes by winning the leadership as early as Monday afternoon, following ex-premier Johnson's unexpected move late Sunday.

The contest, triggered by outgoing leader Liz Truss's resignation on Thursday, requires candidates to secure the support of at least 100 Conservative MPs by 2:00 pm (1300 GMT) on Monday.

Sunak, a wealthy Hindu descendant of immigrants from India and East Africa, had crossed that threshold by Friday night, ahead of declaring his candidacy on Sunday and amassing nearly 150 public nominations from Tory lawmakers.

Johnson's withdrawal from the race – before he had even formally announced his candidacy – left cabinet member Penny Mordaunt the only other declared contender.

But Sunak supporters were quick on Monday to stress that the former finance minister was not assuming he had the leadership "in the bag".

'Working very hard'

"He's speaking to colleagues this morning, he's working very hard to attract those supporters who were perhaps with Boris Johnson previously," said interior minister Grant Shapps.

Mordaunt is expected to come under growing pressure to abandon her leadership bid and end the contest quickly as Britain grapples with multiple crises.

If the 49-year-old resists and can garners 100 nominations, the race will be decided by the party's roughly 170,000 members in an online vote, with the result announced on Friday.

First, however, the Tories' 357 MPs would hold an "indicative" ballot – from 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm on Monday – to show members which candidate commands the most support within the fractious parliamentary party.

Just two months ago, the members selected Truss over Sunak, who had more support among MPs. Mordaunt is popular with the grassroots.

Dire straits

The Tories were forced into their second leadership contest since the summer due to Truss's resignation after only 44 days following the disastrous market response to her tax-slashing mini-budget.

She had replaced Johnson in early September following another government revolt over a slew of scandals, most notably the "Partygate" controversy involving Covid lockdown-breaching parties.

Johnson's attempt to make an immediate return to Downing Street had raised the prospect of months of disarray and disunity within the ruling Conservatives.

Critical backbench Tory MPs warned there could be a wave of resignations under Johnson's renewed leadership, which might have led to the general election demanded by opposition parties. It is not due for at least two years.

SOURCE: AFP