One of three Conservative candidates will have to leave the race to become Boris Johnson’s successor. The vote will come after Johnson makes his final appearance in Parliament as prime minister.
The final two candidates to become Boris Johnson’s successor as UK prime minister will be decided on Wednesday, with Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak vying for the job.
The vote will come after Johnson makes his final appearance in Parliament as prime minister, facing opposition politicians and fellow Conservatives at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session.
Less than two weeks ago, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced he was resigning as leader of the Conservative Party after several ministers threatened to leave their offices if he stayed in charge.
The final two candidates to replace Johnson will be selected in an elimination vote expected after 15:00 UTC this afternoon.
According to the British electoral system, the prime minister can be changed without having to call for a general election.
On Thursday, Parliament adjourns for the summer. Conservatives elect a new leader after six weeks of campaigning to the party’s 200,000 members. The winner will become prime minister.
The final result will be announced on September 5. After surviving a confidence vote on Monday, Johnson is likely to remain caretaker prime minister until the Conservatives elect his successor.
Mordaunt, 49, is a junior trade minister who was in support of Brexit and wants to help Britain recover from its economic downfall since the beginning of the pandemic.
Currently, Britain is experiencing its highest rate of inflation in 40 years.
Rishi Sunak, the 42-year old former finance minister, voted to leave the EU in 2016, and his reputation has taken a hit since it became publicly known that he broke lockdown rules during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Polls show foreign Secretary Liz Truss is favoured among Conservative Party members.
The 46-year old is currently in charge of dealing with negotiations between the EU and Britain over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland. She is known to have taken an increasingly harsh stance with the EU.
Truss voted against Brexit in 2016, a move that has been called out by Sunak.
In response, the foreign secretary questioned Sunak’s ability to stay in control of Britain’s economy. (DW)