Rishi Sunak, former UK Finance Minister, becomes Liz Truss' successor as leader of the British Conservative Party and is the country's new Prime Minister following his audience with King Charles III.
Sunak rose to the party leadership on Monday after the Conservatives' leader in the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, withdrew from the race. The appointment comes after the former Premier Liz Truss announced her resignation after just a month and a half in office.
Rishi Sunak becomes the first practicing Hindu to become leader of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. His goal is to overcome the "profound economic crisis" the country is going through and to unite the conservatives, divided after the latest events in the country.
The United Kingdom is a great country but we face a profound economic crisis.
That's why I am standing to be Leader of the Conservative Party and your next Prime Minister.
I want to fix our economy, unite our Party and deliver for our country. pic.twitter.com/BppG9CytAK
- Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 23, 2022
"The choice our Party makes now will decide whether the next generation of British people will have more opportunity than the last. That's why I am standing to be your next Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party," Sunak said Sunday in a message distributed via social media.
The former Minister of Economy will not have to face any other candidate as he is the only one who has managed to gather more than 100 endorsements necessary to dispute the leadership of the Conservative Party. He got them after former Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Sunday that he would not run in the party's primary election. The other candidate, Penny Mordaunt, failed to secure the necessary endorsements.
Rishi ran against Liz Truss in the primaries held by the party in August, resulting in the least supported candidate. However, just two months later, he is the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
