British Prime Minister Truss suddenly resigned, and former Prime Minister Johnson, who was on vacation abroad, immediately returned to China to run for the leader of the Conservative Party, and had a "secret meeting" with another popular candidate, former British Chancellor of the Exchequer Sunak, to negotiate "who will be prime minister."
According to Reuters local time on October 23, Johnson, who was originally determined to return to the position of prime minister, issued a statement on the evening of the same day announcing his withdrawal from the race, saying that although he had received "enough support to enter the final round of the campaign", he also realized that the country and the Conservative Party "need to be united".
At the same time, Sunak, who has received the public support of more than 100 party members and was the first to cross the threshold of running, shouted to the public on social media on the same day that Britain was facing a serious economic crisis, and he was fully qualified to become the leader of the Conservative Party and the British Prime Minister, unite the Conservative Party and revive the British economy, and he implored the British to give him a chance.
According to the BBC, 155 voted for Sunak, 54 for Johnson and 25 for another candidate, Mordaunt.
Reuters analysis believes that Johnson's withdrawal may indeed pave the way for Sunak to enter the prime minister's office. At present, many of Johnson's supporters have turned to Sunak, who may replace Truss as the new British prime minister as soon as the 24th.
Reuters: After Johnson withdrew, Sunak became the favorite for prime minister
On the evening of the 23rd, Johnson issued a statement saying that in the past few days, many members of the public and parliament have suggested to him that he should run for the leader of the Conservative Party again, and he himself is convinced that he has the ability to avoid an early election and let the Conservative Party win the 2024 election.
However, Johnson said that although he had the support of 102 members of his party and could have "returned to 10 Downing Street", he failed to persuade Sunak or another candidate, Mordaunt, to "come together for the good of the country" and announced his withdrawal from the race. "I believe I have a lot to contribute, but I'm afraid now is not the time." Johnson said.
On the 22nd, the British media "Sun" revealed that Johnson and Sunak had a "secret meeting" that night to try to reach an agreement on "who will be the prime minister". The Daily Telegraph reported earlier on the 23rd that Johnson told party supporters at a meeting that he had failed to reach an agreement with Sunak on the election and that he would continue to seek to run for the leader of the Conservative Party and return to 10 Downing Street.
The Sun revealed on the 22nd that Johnson and Sunak tried to reach an agreement on their candidacy
Reuters pointed out that as of the 23rd, Johnson had the public support of less than 60 Conservative MPs, which is even less than half of Sunak's nearly 150 support. Now, Johnson's withdrawal statement may pave the way for his main opponent Sunak to become the British prime minister, and Sunak may replace Truss as the new prime minister as soon as October 24, local time.
On the 23rd, Sunak posted on social media Twitter, confidently saying that he would succeed Truss as prime minister. "The UK is a great country, but we are facing a serious economic crisis. That's why I'm going to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your next Prime Minister. ”
He also shouted to the public: "The government I lead will be honest, professional and accountable at every level, and I will work hard and get the job done day in and day out." I ask you to give me a chance to help solve your problems. ”
Screenshot of Sunak Twitter
Born in Southampton, England, in 1980, Sunak, 42, to Indian immigrants born in East Africa, was elected to the British Parliament in 2015 and became Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2020. If he wins the party race, he will become Britain's first Indian prime minister.
In July this year, when Johnson fell into a crisis of power due to the "cover-up scandal of subordinates", Sunak, then chancellor of the exchequer, took the lead in resigning and triggered a "wave of resignations" in the government, which became the "fuse" for Johnson's ouster, and then launched an intensive election campaign for party leaders after Johnson's resignation - which led supporters to accuse Sunak of putting his ambitions above the country and lacking "loyalty" to Johnson.
Data map: Sunak (center) and Johnson
The Financial Times believes that Sunak is difficult to reunite the already deeply divided Conservative Party due to the resolute opposition of some party insiders represented by Johnson's allies, which is the biggest obstacle to his victory in this party leadership election.
One Sunak party supporter, speaking on condition of anonymity, reportedly said he himself was relieved to see Johnson announce his withdrawal because the Conservative Party would be "torn apart" if Johnson won. Another Conservative MP, Lucy Allan, tweeted: "I support Johnson as prime minister, but I think he did the right thing for the country. ”
Reuters reported that among Johnson's supporters at present, some may turn to support Mordaunt, the leader of the Conservative Party in the House of Commons of the British Parliament, who claims to be "able to unite the Conservative Party", but more will immediately turn to Sunak. A source close to Mordaunt's campaign revealed that Mordaunt would remain in the race and "she is the most likely candidate to unite the Conservative Party".
Data map: Mordaunt, leader of the Conservative Party in the House of Commons of the British Parliament and former British defense secretary, has a surging image
According to the arrangement of the British Conservative Party, the premise of participating in the party leader election is to obtain at least 100 votes from 357 Conservative MPs by 2pm local time on October 24. According to the rules, if only one candidate meets this threshold, that person will be appointed prime minister on the 24th, and if two candidates meet the criteria, they will enter the party member voting process. Graham Brady, chairman of the Conservative Backbenchers 1922 Commission, which oversaw the election, said a new party leader and prime minister would be chosen by October 28.
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