As Boris Johnson Quits, Know How New UK PM Will Be Chosen, Who Are Frontrunners | EXPLAINED
New UK Prime Minister: The process of electing a new UK PM is expected to be completed by the time of the Conservative Party conference scheduled for October.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson quit as the Conservative Party leader on Thursday following an avalanche of exits from his government over the past two days. Johnson's resignation will trigger an election for a new Tory leader who will become the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Johnson, who will stay as PM until his replacement is chosen, said a timeline to elect a new leader would be announced next week and that he had appointed an interim cabinet. The process of electing a new leader is expected to be completed by the time of the Conservative Party conference scheduled for October.
The crisis for Johnson comes three years after he helped secure a thumping majority for his party at the 2019 general election. The next election is scheduled around 2024.
How Will UK Choose Its New Prime Minister?
The process to find a new Conservative Party leader will be overseen by the 1922 Committee, which oversees the Conservatives in Parliament.
Candidates aiming for the leadership post must be nominated by two other Conservative lawmakers. After the names are shortlisted, the legislators of the party hold several rounds of votes to narrow down the number of candidates.
The lawmakers then vote for their favoured candidate in a secret ballot, and the person with the fewest votes is eliminated. Also, those who fail to reach a set threshold of votes are eliminated as well. The threshold depends on the size of the parliamentary party at the time.
Several rounds of voting are held until there are two candidates remaining. Here, the entire Conservative Party membership votes through postal ballot and the winner is named the new leader.
As of last year, according to a NYT report, there were about 200,000 Conservative Party members. They pay a standard annual subscription of 25 pounds.
The leader of the party that has a majority in the House of Commons is the de facto prime minister.
READ | Who Is Rishi Sunak? Indian-Origin British Politician In Race To Become UK's Next PM
How Long Does The Process Take To Elect A New Leader?
The time to elect a new leader depends on how many candidates put their hat in the ring. In 2019, Boris Johnson took charge of 10 Downing Street just two months after Theresa May resigned as PM. Johnson had faced former health minister Jeremy Hunt in the race to become the next premier. Then, the process began with 10 candidates, and took six ballots.
In 2016, Theresa May became the leader less than three weeks after David Cameron resigned. All other contenders had dropped out mid-race that time.
Who Are In The Race To Become The Next UK PM?
Six key contenders are expected to launch bids to succeed Boris Johnson as the Prime Minister of the UK.
Penny Mordaunt, the international trade minister, is one of the bookmakers' favourites to replace Boris Johnson. Mordaunt was a key supporter of Brexit in the 2016 referendum and was sacked as defence secretary when Boris Johnson came to power.
Rishi Sunak is also in line to succeed Johnson and was one of the favourites until it came to light that his wife had non-domiciled tax status and that he held a US green card while being a minister. The son-in-law of Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy, however, had won praise for getting the UK economy back on track following the Covid-19 pandemic and a jobs retention programme that prevented widespread unemployment.
Foreign secretary Liz Truss has been open about her leadership ambitions and is currently the longest serving member of the Cabinet, having held positions under David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson.
Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary, is another candidate in the race to replace Boris Johnson. Hunt has been a vocal critic of Johnson's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and the "partygate" affair.
British defence minister Ben Wallace is also one of the favourites among Conservative party members to be the next party leader, according to the results of a YouGov poll conducted by Reuters. He has been widely praised for handling the UK's response during Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Nadhim Zahawi, who has been appointed as finance minister in place of Rishi Sunak, could also step up to the top job. Zahawi was born in Baghdad in 1967 and came to the UK when he was nine years old, according to the BBC. However, he has limited frontline political experience.
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