The Conservative Party of the United Kingdom has elected Rishi Sunak as its new leader. According to a statement by Sir Graham Brady, the 1922 Committee only received one nomination for the new party leader position supported by 100 MPs.
Sunak was proclaimed by Sir Brady to be the new party leader and, as a result, the new Prime Minister. He said Rishi Sunak, the new Tory leader, would speak to MPs at 14:30.
Sunak is the only candidate for the role after Penny Mordaunt, one of the earlier contenders for the top position in the UK, declared her resignation from the contest.
In a statement, Mordaunt stated, "Our Party is our membership. Whether we are fans, activists, elected officials, or fundraisers. Whoever becomes our leader will affect all of us.
"These are historic times. Coworkers believe we need assurance right now despite the constrained timeframe for the top competition. They made their choice in good faith and for the nation's sake.
"Members should be aware that the agreed-upon 1922 procedure has fairly and thoroughly evaluated this issue. We have just selected our new Prime Minister as a consequence. This decision is remarkable and once again demonstrates the skill and variety of our party. Rishi has my full backing.
"I am happy about the campaign we ran and appreciative of everyone who supported me from all facets of our party. We all owe it to Rishi, the nation, and each other to band together and advance the common good. There is a lot of work to accomplish.
Sunak, 42, won after Johnson decided late Sunday to give up on his attempt at a political return. Sunak pulled off a dramatic turn of events just weeks after losing out to Liz Truss for the position of leader of the ruling Tories.
After the statement, Sunak allegedly received a thunderous response while speaking to party members privately. Nicola Sturgeon, the leader of Scotland, was among the first to congratulate Sunak. Her nationalist administration in Edinburgh plans to stage an independence vote the following year.
Despite our political disagreements, she remarked, "I wish him well." She remarked that it was a significant occasion because he became the first British Asian and the first person from any minority ethnic origin to serve as prime minister
The contest ends abruptly.
To compete in the election, which was set off by incumbent leader Truss's resignation on Thursday, contenders had to garner the support of at least 100 Conservative MPs by Monday at 2:00 p.m. (1300 GMT).
Brady said that only Sunak had crossed the finish line. By Friday night, Sunak, a wealthy Hindu descended from immigrants to India and East Africa, had exceeded that threshold and gathered about 200 public nominations, which is more than half of the Tory party's parliamentary base.
Cabinet member Mordaunt was the only confirmed candidate when Johnson withdrew from the contest before officially declared.
However, she could not secure the required backing, which resulted in an early conclusion to the competition.
First British Asian Prime Minister
Sunak's triumph occurred on the day when Hindus all around the world celebrate the beginning of the five-day festival of Diwali, which honours the triumph of good over evil.
In November 2020, while Sunak was chancellor of the exchequer, he celebrated by burning oil lights on the porch of the chancellor's official house at 11 Downing Street.
Following a devastating market reaction to her tax-cutting mini-budget, Truss resigned after just 44 days, forcing the Tories into their second leadership battle since the summer.
In early September, Truss took over for Johnson after a cabinet uprising headed by Sunak over some scandals, most notably the "Partygate" affair involving Covid lockdown-violating parties. Truss promised Sunak her "full support."
Johnson's ambition to return to Downing Street immediately presented the possibility of months of chaos and dissension within the now-in-power Conservatives.
Backbench Tory MPs who were critical of Johnson's new leadership warned that there may have been a wave of resignations, which might have triggered the general election that the opposition parties wanted. One has at least two years until it is due.
Johnson shortened his Caribbean vacation so that he could fly back to Britain on Saturday. Johnson quickly yielded, though, late on Sunday, acknowledging that "you can't lead successfully until you have a unified party in parliament," a symptom of his weakened political position.
He stated, "I feel I have much to give, but I am concerned that this is just not the appropriate moment," while adamantly claiming to have amassed 100 nominations to proceed.
Johnson received a heartfelt homage from Sunak, who said on Twitter: "I genuinely hope he continues to contribute to public life at home and abroad."