Following a coup inside his own Conservative Party, Boris Johnson announced his resignation and urged the nation to “start now” by selecting a new prime minister.
Boris Johnson stated that it was now “clearly the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party” for there to be a new party leader and, consequently, a new prime minister.
He continued, stating that the procedure for selecting the next leader should start right away and that the schedule would be revealed next week.
Nearly three years after taking office as prime minister, Johnson has recently been embroiled in a slew of controversies that have led even his staunchest supporters to turn against him.
Indignant at Chris Pincher, Johnson’s former deputy chief whip charged with molesting two men last week, handling his departure, nearly 60 government members, including five cabinet ministers, have resigned since Tuesday.
Boris Johnson made an initial effort to weather the storm despite an unusual exodus of middle-ranking ministers leaving the administration, a beating at Prime Minister’s Questions, and a harsh appearance before a committee of senior parliamentarians in Parliament. He continued to say he would not step down on Wednesday.
But on Thursday, Johnson ultimately caved in after hearing from some of his closest allies that the game was over.
Keir Starmer, the head of the opposition Labour Party, hailed Johnson’s resignation as “excellent news for the country” and noted that “it should have happened long ago.”
Johnson may hold on to his position as prime minister until the Conservative Party’s annual conference in October, despite having announced his resignation as party leader.
Typically, a Conservative leader who steps down allows the party time to run a full leadership election.
Some, though, believed Johnson ought to vacate his position more swiftly.
The resignation of Johnson will be a surprising setback for a prime minister who was once regarded as possessing superpowers and having appeal across traditional party lines.
In December 2019, he won resoundingly on the promise of securing a Brexit deal and guiding the UK to a successful future outside of the European Union. However, the Covid-19 pandemic’s aftermath caused his premiership to fall apart.
The Prime Minister has recently come under fire from all sides for both his behavior and that of some of his cabinet ministers, notably the unlawful, Covid-19 lockdown-breaking parties that were held in his Downing Street offices and for which he and others were fined.
His poll numbers have also been impacted by a number of other issues. The charges against him include claims that he improperly used donor funds to pay for renovations to his Downing Street residence and that he forced MPs to cast votes in favor of a colleague who had broken lobbying laws.
He survived a vote of confidence last month among party members, but the actual number of parliamentarians who rebelled against him was larger than his supporters anticipated: 41% of his own parliamentary party refused to support him.
Late last month, he took another hit when his party lost two parliamentary by-elections in a single night, casting additional doubt on his ability to lead.
