Race for Theresa’s May seat hots up

Following the resignation of Theresa May as the Prime Minister of Britain, around a dozen British Conservative MPs has formally throw their hats into the ring on Monday in the fight to her as party leader and Prime Minister.

Nominations to succeed May who resigned on Friday as head of the ruling Tory party following her failure to deliver Brexit — open at 10:00 am (0900 GMT) and close at 5:00 pm (1600 GMT).

Britain’s departure from the European Union, twice delayed and now set for October 31, will dominate a contest scheduled to run until late July and which, in the past, has been characterised by shocks and surprises.

ALSO READ: Why Melaye may become next Kogi governor – Fani-Kayode

The new leader of the centre-right party — which won the most seats at the last general election in 2017 — will almost certainly become prime minister, with May remaining in Downing Street in the meantime.

Unofficial campaigning already started weeks ago and Johnson has emerged as the undisputed frontrunner — although in previous leadership races the early pacesetter has never been victorious.

While current foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt, interior minister Sajid Javid and Environment Secretary Michael Gove are perhaps the best-known names of 10 other MPs running, May’s former foreign secretary Boris Johnson is seen as the runaway favourite.