Foreign Secretary Liz Truss elected new British Prime Minister

According to the results of voting by ordinary members of the Conservative Party, the head of the Foreign Ministry bypassed his opponent - the former head of the UK Treasury Rishi Sunak. Truss received 81,326 votes from her fellow party members, Sunak - only 60,339. Voting began on August 4 and lasted until September 2.

On September 6, Truss, in company with outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson, will go to Balmoral Castle, the Scottish residence of the Queen, where a meeting with Elizabeth II will take place. In a formal ceremony, Johnson will resign, and the Queen will appoint Truss as the new British prime minister. If this happens, then Truss will become the 15th prime minister, who was appointed by Elizabeth II.

“Traditionally, the British monarch appointed prime ministers at Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle, but this time the doctors advised the queen not to leave Scotland, ” Interfax notes .

Boris Johnson succeeded Theresa May, who appointed Truss Attorney General and Lord Chancellor, and therefore Deputy Prime Minister. Thus, the current head of the British Foreign Office became the first woman in this post. Truss first announced plans to nominate her candidacy for the post of leader of the Conservatives after May's resignation in 2019, but later abandoned her idea and supported Boris Johnson. In Johnson's cabinet, Truss was Secretary of State for Trade and Chairman of the British Board of Trade. Later, she was appointed Minister for Women and Equality, and in 2021, while retaining this post, Truss became Foreign Minister.