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Topics: Politics, UK News, Boris Johnson
Will Carrick-Buchanan
After the recent Chris Pincher scandal and the resignation of both Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Health secretary Sajid Javid, Boris Johnson has resigned as prime minister, with a statement expected within the next few hours.
The news comes hot on the heels of Johnson only narrowly escaping a vote of no confidence back in June, in which 148 out of 359 MPs, (41 percent) voted against him.
Johnson stated at the time: “It's a convincing result, a decisive result and what it means is that as a government we can move.”
So, with the PM agreeing to stand down, who will be stepping into No. 10 next?
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There are quite a few candidates who could replace Johnson at number 10, some more likely than others.
According to Betfair, the favourites to take over are Penny Mordaunt, with odds of 6/1, as well as Rishi Sunak, whose odds come in at 33/5.
Another one of the frontrunners to succeed him is foreign secretary Liz Truss, whose current odds of becoming the next PM are at 33/1.
Truss has been a prominent figure in Britain’s response to Russia’s war in Ukraine and has also been a key figure in the Brexit negotiations with the EU.
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Truss originally became popular as international trade secretary, where she secured trade deals with dozens of countries.
Mark Harper is another likely successor to Boris Johnson, with his odds coming in at 31/10.
The Tory back bencher is one of the MPs most adamant about Johnson leaving.
He recently heavily hinted that the Cabinet should rise up to oust the PM, after he accused Downing Street aides of lying to ministers over the Chris Pincher scandal.
Jeremy Hunt is also looking to become PM once again after he ran for Tory leader back in 2019. His are odds are at 31/5.
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He’s been chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee since January 2022.
Hunt was another MP to vote against Johnson in the vote of no confidence.
Another candidate in the mix is Tom Tugendhat, whose odds are 37/5.