Boris Johnson has decided to return from a holiday in Great Britain as he considers a bold attempt to win a second term as prime minister just weeks after he was forced to step down, reports Reuters. Radio Free Europe.
Some of Johnson's colleagues warn that his return could create even more political chaos.
Potential candidates for the new prime minister, since Liz Truss dramatically resigned on Thursday after just six weeks in office, began lobbying over the weekend to secure enough nominations to enter the leadership race before the deadline on Monday, October 24.
Johnson, who was on vacation in the Caribbean when Trass resigned and has not said publicly whether he wants his old job back, won the backing of dozens of Conservative MPs but must secure the 100 votes needed to enter the race to become prime minister. .
Commerce Secretary James Duddridge said Friday that Johnson had told him he was ready. He said on Saturday that Johnson had secured 100 nominations, although according to Reuters there were about 40, while former finance minister Rishi Sunak, so far the bookies' favorite, had surpassed 100.
Former defense secretary Penny Mordaunt has become the first candidate to officially announce her intention to run as the next leader of the Conservative Party, but Johnson and Sunak, once his finance minister, are leading the field ahead of next week's vote.
The prospect of Johnson returning to government is a polarizing issue for many in the Conservative Party, which is deeply divided after seeing off four prime ministers in six years.
For some conservative MPs, Johnson is a winner of the vote, for others he is toxic and the question is whether he can convince the dozens of MPs who left him that he is now the person who can unite the party.
"Death Spiral"
Former Conservative leader William Hague said on Friday that Johnson's return was probably the worst idea he had heard in almost half a century as a member of the party. He said it would lead to a "death spiral" for the Conservatives.
If Johnson can secure the necessary number of nominations, he is likely to face Sunak, who resigned as his finance minister in July, claiming his former boss was incapable of making tough decisions.
Sunak is the first leadership candidate to reach the XNUMX-nomination threshold to enter the race before Monday's deadline, according to media reports. Johnson currently has about half that support.
Johnson is currently under investigation by Parliament's Privileges Committee to determine whether he lied to the House of Commons about parties that breached the country's coronavirus lockdown. If ministers are found to have knowingly misled parliament, they are expected to resign.
Prime Minister with the shortest term
The resignation of British Prime Minister Liz Truss on Thursday, October 20, launched another leadership race — the second in just four months — of a fractured and demoralized Conservative Party and a new head of government.
Trass resigned after just 44 days in office and entered the history books as the shortest-serving prime minister, replacing George Canning, who held the role for 119 days before he died in 1827.
Trass's announcement outside Downing Street follows a near-total collapse of her political authority which, according to the Guardian, has seen her crash economic markets, lose two key ministers and lose the confidence of almost all her MPs.
Tras will be the Prime Minister with the shortest term in the history of Great Britain.
Liz Truss told reporters that she took office at a time of "great economic and international instability." She stated that she could not fulfill what she was elected for and that she was resigning.
Trass replaced Boris Johnson at the beginning of September, who was forced to leave after a turbulent year, marked by a scandal with a party in the Prime Minister's office while the British had to observe strict measures due to COVID-19.
The race to become Britain's fourth prime minister in four years has been sped up to last just seven days.
According to the rules, only three candidates will be able to reach the first round of voting by deputies on Monday afternoon, October 24, and by October 28 it should be known who will be the new prime minister.
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