Will Rishi Sunak make history on Sept 5? Know about his chances of becoming next UK PM
Friday night was the deadline for the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party members to declare their preference between Rishi Sunak & Liz Truss for the PM post.
Friday night was the deadline for the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party members to declare their preference between former Chancellor of Indian descent Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss in the gruelling contest to succeed Boris Johnson as the British Prime Minister and the head of the Conservative Party.
The voting has concluded, and Sir Graham Brady, the returning officer, will announce the outcome on Monday, September 5 at 12.30 p.m. local time (17.00 p.m. IST), according to the Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ).
Notably, over the past month, Sunak, 42, and Truss, 47, have faced off in a dozen televised debates throughout the UK in an effort to win over the votes of an estimated 160,000 Tory voters. Now that the ballots are closed, let’s look at the chances of Rishi Sunak becoming the UK PM.
Amid reports of Truss enjoying massive support, Sunak faces serious challenge
According to media reports, Rishi Sunak, a member of parliament for Richmond (Yorks) and a former chancellor of the exchequers, has odds as low as 8 to 5 against his rival Liz Truss, in some polls. Notably, just a few weeks prior, Sunak in the several rounds of voting by Tory members of Parliament, put Truss far behind.
According to the polls of global public opinion and data company– YouGov, in the first round between July 20 – July 21 Liz Truss enjoyed an early lead of 62% against Sunak, which further increased to 69% from July 29-August 2 and crystallised to 66% until August 17. It is interesting to mention that Sunak’s popularity dropped from a high of 41% in Q3 2020 to 26% in Q1 2022. But why is Sunak seen losing the race to Truss?
Here are the possible reasons why Sunak seems to be lagging behind Truss
Sunak is seen as a reason for Boris’s resignation
Though Rishi Sunak’s popularity rose after his resignation from Boris Johnson’s cabinet, he is seen by Tories as someone who back-stabbed the former UK PM. Notably, Jhonson, who brought Sunak into his cabinet, had to step down after the resignation of around 50 other MPs following Sunak’s resignation. Sunak, who has been continuously denying back-stabbing Johnson. is considered a mastermind behind the coup against Johnson with the UK media citing a famous political cliche –“He who wields the knife never wears the crown.”
Sunak and his wife’s wealth
According to the UK media, Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy are wealthier than the Queen. As per Sunday Times Rich List, Akshata Murthy is said to have assets worth £430 million, making her wealthier than the British Queen Elizabeth II. The Sunaks are actually referred to as Westminster’s first billionaire couple and, as Clive of India’s did not go over well for them, they likely have the most considerable fortune of any House of Commons family, according to UK media.
Notably, many think it would be difficult for a rich man like Sunak to truly understand the problems that ordinary people face. The fact that the cost of living is the main issue has not improved the situation.
Apart from these, a few of the reasons are: Sunak not offering any tax cut, unlike his opponent Truss, and Sunaks green-card issue wherein the UK media claims that the couple had retained their US green card even after returning to the UK raising issues about their long-term plans.
Though the chances of Rishi Sunak becoming UK PM are bleak, the results on Monday will tell the final verdicts of Tory voters on who will be the next UK Prime Minister.
