LONDON (dpa-AFX) – British Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Penny Mordaunt has been the first to announce her candidacy to succeed outgoing Prime Minister Liz Truss. “I have been heartened by the support of colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest,” the Conservative politician said on Twitter on Friday. As party leader and prime minister, she wants to unite the country, implement the Tories’ election promises and win the next general election, the 49-year-old Mordaunt continued.
Truss announced her resignation on Thursday after just over six weeks in office. Who will succeed her is to be decided as early as next week. Applicants need the support of at least 100 MPs. When voting in the parliamentary group, two finalists should then be determined, who will face the vote of the party base in an online election.
Mordaunt, who had already applied for the post of prime minister after the resignation of Truss’ predecessor Boris Johnson in the summer, was third in the number of her supporters on Friday, behind ex-Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and ex-Prime Minister Johnson, according to the British media . Until then, none of the three had reached the necessary supporter threshold./cmy/DP/ngu