mobanmarketIndian-origin former Chancellor of the Exchequer of the UK, Rishi Sunak has moved one step closer to becoming the next Prime Minister of the country.
On Sunday, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson who returned to the UK from a foreign vacation after his successor Liz Truss announced that she was stepping down, less than two months after assuming office, said that he has pulled out of the contest even though he has enough support but decided that it was not the right thing to do.
Reuters
Jump To
Three-way race narrows down to two
Johnson’s sudden return to the UK had briefly made the Conservative Party leadership race a three-way fight – between, him, Sunak, and Penny Mordaunt.
Sunak has received the support of 100 MPs, the minimum required to avoid a run-off.
Mordaunt, the current leader of the House of Commons has also claimed that she has the support of more than 100 MPs.
What is next for Rishi Sunak?
The two contenders have until 2 pm on Monday to get the required 100 endorsements from MPs and there are a total of 357 Conservative MPs in Parliament.
Reuters
MPs will hold an “indicative” ballot of the final two, with the winner then decided in an online vote of party members, to end on October 28.
According to a tally by the BBC, 155 MPs are backing Sunak and 25 are supporting Mordaunt.
Sunak’s rise to the top post in UK
Sunak who was appointed as the Chancellor of the Exchequer by Johnson deserted him earlier this year, like many of his key allies, leading to his eventual departure from 10 Downing Street in July.
Sunak who then launched his own campaign to succeed Johnson was widely seen as the frontrunner in the race but lost in the last round to Truss, who failed to hold on to her seat for even two months.
AP
Tax cuts promised by Truss were widely seen as the factor that shifted the vote in her favour, but it also became her undoing as the Prime Minister.
Johnson who had a bitter fallout with Sunak had told his supporters to back anyone but not his former colleague.
Following Johnson’s return from the Caribbeans, he had met Sunak and the two leaders are said to have sorted out their differences.
AFP
Who is Rishi Sunak?
42-year-old Sunak was born to Indian-origin parents who had emigrated from east Africa and is a practicing Hindu.
He is also the son-in-law of Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy.
Before joining politics Sunak worked as an analyst at Goldman Sachs.
For more on news, sports, and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Click Here: cheap bulldogs jersey