Rishi Sunak, the former UK finance minister, on Thursday established his lead over competitors in the race to become the next British prime minister, following the resignation of Boris Johnson.
Sunak, whose exit from the Treasury last week was one of the first in a string of layoffs that forced Boris out of office, is a favorite among Conservative lawmakers despite being blamed by some lawmakers for his role in Boris’s downfall.
He faces competition from Penny Mordaunt, a junior trade minister, and Foreign Minister Liz Truss, who launched her campaign arguing that she was the only candidate with the experience to make the necessary “hard decisions”.
There are now five candidates after Brexit Attorney General Suella Braverman was eliminated from the race on Thursday for failing to reach the 30-vote threshold needed to stay in the race at the end of the second round of voting.
Whoever takes office will have to deal with soaring inflation and low economic growth in the UK, as well as a lack of public confidence in politics after Boris’ period in power, marked by a succession of crises.
The new prime minister will be announced on September 5, based on the result of a vote by the 200,000 members of the Conservative Party.
After confirming his leadership, Sunak thanked his supporters and said on Twitter: “I am prepared to give everything I have in the service of our nation. Together we can restore confidence, rebuild our economy and bring the country together.”
Earlier, he went on television to say his economic priority will be fighting high inflation, not the tax cuts promised by his rivals.
Truss promised to restore confidence in politics. “I’m going to campaign as a Conservative and I’m going to govern as a Conservative. I can lead, I can make tough decisions and I can get things done. I’m ready to be prime minister from day one,” she said.
Asked why she didn’t resign when support for Johnson collapsed last week, she said: “I’m a loyal person. I’m loyal to Boris Johnson.”
Sunak may be the most popular candidate among his peers, but a YouGov poll of nearly 900 party members found that Penny Mordaunt was the favorite, beating everyone else in the finals.
Also in the running are former Equality Minister Kemi Badenoch and Speaker of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat.
Learn more about competitors
RISHI SUNAK
He was one of the experienced members of the Boris management to resign at the most recent moment of the crisis. He announced his candidacy with a video in which he promised to face the difficult economic scenario with “honesty, seriousness and determination”. Sunak was appointed finance secretary in early 2020 and was lauded for an economic rescue package to tackle the crisis caused by the pandemic.
LIZ TRUSS
She is the second woman to head the Foreign Affairs portfolio, according to the BBC network, and was elected deputy for the first time in 2010. According to the Guardian newspaper, she must promise to reduce tax burdens. Truss carefully cultivates her image and has posed in a tank emulating a record by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
PENNY MORDAUNT
Currently holding a position in the Finance portfolio, she was Secretary of Defense under Theresa May. The 49-year-old congresswoman launched herself into the dispute this Sunday with a message on Twitter. “Our leadership needs to change. It needs to become a little less about the leader and a lot more about the ship,” she wrote.
TOM TUGENDHAT
He became an MP in 2015 and is the current chairman of the Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs. He was a soldier in the Armed Forces, having served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He launched his candidacy with an article in the Daily Telegraph, proposing to unite a country divided by Brexit.
KEMI BADENOCH
A parliamentarian since 2017, he held minor positions in the government, including that of Secretary of State for Equality, without ever joining the cabinet. She was also part of the London legislature. She is one of the less prominent names in the dispute.
