Europe

Boris Johnson Drops Out of Race For UK Conservative Leadership, Prime Minister Post

FILE PHOTO: Boris Johnson reacts during a visit to Thales weapons manufacturer in Belfast on May 16, 2022Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has dropped out of the race to 10 Downing Street. Johnson was considered a potential replacement for Liz Truss, the former Conservative leader and Prime Minister, who resigned Thursday.Boris Johnson is out of the Conservative leadership race, opening the door to former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, who announced his bid earlier on Sunday.After Truss’ resignation last week, Johnson was rumored to be seeking his old position. Allies of Johnson claimed that he had 100 backers in the party needed to run for PM, though media outlets refuted that claim.Johnson claims to have enough backing to win the Prime Minister post. However, he said in a statement it “would simply not be the right thing to do.”“There is a very good chance that I would be successful in the election with Conservative Party members – and that I could indeed be back in Downing Street on Friday,” Johnson said in a statement. “But in the course of the last days I have sadly come to the conclusion that this would simply not be the right thing to do. You can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in parliament.”Johnson claimed to have the support of 102 MPs, enough to run for the office of Prime Minister. However, only 57 MPs publicly declared for Johnson. With him announcing he would not seek the position, it is unlikely the public will find out if the claim was true.WorldUK Home Secretary Shapps Supports Sunak’s Bid for Conservative LeadershipYesterday, 13:25 GMTJohnson dropping out of the race clears the path for Rishi Sunak, who looks set to be the next Prime Minister. Sunak served as Johnson’s Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022. He resigned on July 5, along with health secretary Sajid Javid. Johnson announced his resignation on July 7.While Sunak remains the favorite, Penny Mordaunt, who is currently the Leader of the House of Commons will also be trying to shore up support before nomination papers are submitted. Sunak says he is taking nothing for granted.“Rishi will be continuing to talk to colleagues tomorrow morning before nomination papers go in, and discussing how best to unite the party and take the country forward.” A source close to the situation told the BBC.Boris Johnson resigned as Prime Minister of the UK in July, after more than a dozen officials and cabinet members resigned due to the “Partygate” scandal that plagued his administration.His replacement, Liz Truss became the leader of the conservative party and took the post of Prime Minister. However, she became embroiled in her own scandals due to tax cuts and a budget plan that tanked the British Pound. Truss resigned after only 45 days in office, making her the shortest serving PM in UK history.

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