Rishi Sunak is favourite to become Britain’s next prime minister after Boris Johnson pulled out of the Conservative Party leadership race to replace Liz Truss, who resigned last week.
Sunak, the 42-year-old former finance minister, could be named leader as soon as Monday to replace Liz Truss, becoming Britain’s third prime minister in less than two months.
With the endorsement of nearly 150 conservative MPs, Sunak, who served as Chancellor under Johnson has emerged as the frontrunner in the Tory leadership race.
The multi-millionaire former hedge fund boss will be tasked with rebuilding Britain’s fiscal reputation through deep spending cuts as it slides into a recession, dragged down by surging energy, food, and mortgage rates.
He will also preside over a party that has bounced from one crisis to the next in recent months, badly split along ideological lines, and a country that is growing increasingly angry at the conduct of its politicians.
“The United Kingdom is a great country but we face a profound economic crisis,” Sunak said in a statement declaring his candidacy on Sunday.
First, he must defeat the last candidate in the contest, Penny Mordaunt, who is fighting to secure the support of 100 lawmakers to get on to Monday’s ballot.
Mordaunt, who is leader of parliament’s House of Commons, has so far received the backing of around 25 politicians. More than 150 have backed Sunak.
“He’s not taking anything for granted at all,” interior minister Grant Shapps, a supporter of Sunak, told BBC television.
“He’s speaking to colleagues throughout this morning. And of course, we’ll be hoping to attract sufficient numbers to ensure that this can be put to bed.”
