Boris Johnson withdrew from the race:
After Boris Johnson withdrew from the race on Sunday, Rishi Sunak appeared to be in line to become the next prime minister of Britain. Johnson claimed that despite having enough support to go to the final round, he realized the country and the Conservative Party needed unity.
After returning from vacation in the Caribbean, Johnson hurried home to try to win the support of 100 parliamentarians so that he could run in Monday's election to succeed Liz Truss, who took over for him in September after he was forced to resign due to a series of scandals. He said he could have been "back in Downing Street" with the support of 102 parliamentarians, but he was unable to convince either Sunak or the other candidate Penny Mordaunt to work together "in the national interest."
By Sunday, the former prime minister had won the public support of less than 60 Conservative legislators, which is much less than Sunak's over 150 endorsements.
In early Asian trade, the pound gained more than half a penny against the dollar.Sunak, a 42-year-old former finance minister and Johnson's bitter adversary, is now set to be appointed prime minister, maybe as soon as Monday. If approved, he would take over for Truss, who was forced to step down after launching an economic agenda that caused havoc on the financial markets.
If two candidates clear the bar, they will advance to a vote of the party membership. The winner will be declared on Friday, only days before Jeremy Hunt, the country's new finance minister, reveals the health of the nation's finances in a budget plan scheduled for release on October 31.That sparked worries that Johnson might retake Downing Street with the support of party members rather than a majority of parliamentarians, further dividing the party. Late on Sunday, Hunt formally endorsed Sunak.
Some Boris Johnson backers could have shifted to Mordaunt, who has run as the unity candidate, but many did so right away. The former defence minister will remain in the race, according to a source close to the Mordaunt campaign.
According to the source, "She is the uniting candidate who is most likely to keep the wings of the Conservative Party together."
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