LONDON –
Britain’s Conservative Party has picked former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss as the two finalists in an election to replace Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The result came on the day the divisive and unrepentant leader ended his last appearance in Parliament as prime minister with the words “Goodbye, baby.”
The couple came first and second in a vote by Conservative lawmakers on Wednesday. Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt came in third place and was eliminated.
The race pits Sunak, who ran the British economy during the pandemic, against Truss, who led the UK’s response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The two contenders will spend the next few weeks campaigning for the votes of some 180,000 Conservative Party members across the country, who will vote by post or online. The winner of the party’s leadership vote will be announced on September 5 and will automatically become Britain’s next prime minister.
Sunak won every round of the lawmakers’ vote, but is less popular with the party’s rank and file. Truss is one of the right-wing favorites of the party.
The bitter campaign has exposed deep divisions in the Conservative Party at the end of Johnson’s three-year reign marred by scandal. Truss has called Sunak a “socialist” for raising taxes in response to the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Sunak has responded by saying his rivals are selling economic “fairy tales” to British voters as the country grapples with high inflation.
All the contenders (there were 11 to begin with) sought to distance themselves from Johnson, whose tenure began boldly in 2019 with the promise of “doing Brexit” and a resounding election victory, but is now ending in disgrace.
Johnson resigned on July 7 after months of ethics scandals, but remains interim leader until the party chooses his successor.
On Wednesday, he faced sneering opposition politicians and weary Conservatives in his final prime ministerial question session in the House of Commons. It was a pessimistic outing, with supporting Conservative MPs heaving praise and opposition politicians offering variations on “bon voyage”.
Johnson praised what he called his achievements – getting Britain out of the European Union and through COVID-19, and supporting Ukraine against Russia’s invasion – declaring: “Mission largely accomplished, for now,” before leaving. with Arnold Schwarzenegger “goodbye” catchphrase from “Terminator 2”.
Opposition Labor Party leader Keir Starmer said: “I will miss the illusion.”
Johnson clung to office through months of scandals over his finances and his trial, refusing to resign when police fined him for government parties violating COVID-19 lockdown rules. He eventually resigned after one scandal too many, the appointment of a politician accused of sexual misconduct, prompted his ministers to resign en masse.
Despite remaining prime minister, he has largely disappeared from the scene, even as Britain grapples with a summer cost-of-living crisis and job unrest as inflation hits 9.4%.
Johnson did not attend any emergency government meetings on the heat wave that brought record temperatures of 104 Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) to Britain this week. Last week he took a ride in a Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jet, with “Top Gun”-style footage posted by his office, and then threw a weekend party at Checkers, the accompanying country house. to the prime minister’s job.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused Johnson of wanting to “become Tom Cruise” and urged him to resign immediately.
“We need a full-time prime minister to take care of our country instead of someone who has retired,” Khan said.