HASfter the resignation of British Prime Minister Liz Truss, a new race in Downing Street began on Friday 21 October, with in particular the probable desire for the return of Boris Johnson and the official announcement of the candidacy of Penny Mordaunt. The current British Minister for Relations with Parliament announced on Twitter on Friday her candidacy to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom following the resignation of Liz Truss.
“I am a candidate to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your Prime Minister, to unite our country, to fulfill our commitments and to win the next general elections,” the 49-year-old MP, former Minister of Defense and Trade, wrote on Twitter. international.
I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest.
I’m running to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your Prime Minister – to unite our country, deliver our pledges and win the next GE.#PM4PM pic.twitter.com/MM0NTHJ5lH
— Penny Mordaunt (@PennyMordaunt) October 21, 2022
Boris Johnson’s possible return to the headlines
For his part, Boris Johnson recorded his first support but also fierce opposition. His possible candidacy, on the front page of a large part of the press on Friday, takes shape as the declarations of support multiply.
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British Defense Minister Ben Wallace, heavyweight of the Conservative majority, announced on Friday October 21 that he was “leaning” for ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson to replace the former Prime Minister at Downing Street. Again ruling out launching himself, Ben Wallace, considered the most popular minister among the party base, said that, particularly given the measures Boris Johnson had taken for the country’s security, he “leans” for his former boss.
“But you know, there are still several days left, we will see what happens”, he however tempered on television. Another strong supporter, Business Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg became the first member of the current government to support Boris Johnson on Friday by launching the slogan #BORISorBUST, “BORISouLAFAILLITE” on Twitter.
A candidacy that divides the conservative camp
The suitors are on the hunt for supporters to reach the threshold of 100 sponsorships required by Monday at the start of the afternoon. The name of the winner will be known no later than next Friday. Three months after his departure due to a succession of scandals, those close to Boris Johnson are highlighting the legitimacy he derives from his electoral triumph at the end of 2019.
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His opponents sharpen their blades, and recall the succession of lies and embarrassing cases of the three years of his mandate, which have left deep traces. Some Tory MPs are even warning they will quit if Boris Johnson returns. “He had his chance,” said David Lidington, a former member of Theresa May’s government, on the BBC.
Seen by the Johnson camp as a traitor who precipitated Johnson’s downfall, Rishi Sunak was the preferred candidate of the Conservative MPs, before being finally dismissed in favor of Liz Truss by the adherents. The current Minister for Relations with Parliament, Penny Mordaunt, darling of Tory activists who came third, is also a very serious candidate.
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An accelerated process
Whoever the next Prime Minister is, he will lead a party plagued by divisions in the face of opposition at the highest level in the polls, but above all a country plunged into a serious cost of living crisis. Inflation exceeds 10%, the highest for 40 years, in a tense social context in the United Kingdom where strikes have multiplied in recent months, especially in transport.
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The future head of government will be the fifth since the Brexit referendum in 2016 and the third in two months. A pace that, some observers on Twitter have mocked, would allow King Charles to beat his mother Elizabeth II’s record – 15 Prime Ministers – by the summer of 2024. In order for a new Prime Minister to be appointed by Friday, October 28, an accelerated process was put in place by the Conservative Party, in power for twelve years.
While waiting for her successor, Liz Truss remains in power
The threshold of 100 sponsorships thus limits the number of candidates to a maximum of three, the party having 357 deputies in the House of Commons. Then, MPs will either have to agree on two names that the 170,000 party members will have to decide by online vote by October 28, or on the name of a single person who would then immediately enter Downing. Street. In the meantime, Liz Truss remains in power.
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Arrived on September 6 at her post, Liz Truss was swept away by a deep crisis of confidence after reversals to calm the storm on the markets triggered by the budgetary announcements of her government. She broke unpopularity records and landed the unenviable title of Britain’s most fleeting Prime Minister ever.