Who are the two candidates behind Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak?

There are only two of them to take Boris Johnson’s place. The former British prime minister was forced to step down as leader of the Conservative Party in early July after six decades out of government. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is favored by pollsters to take on her rival, Rishi Chung. Postal and online voting by about 200,000 party members that began in early August ended on Friday. The winner will be announced on Monday, September 5 and sworn in the following day.

Francinfo presents two contenders for Downing Street.

Liz Truss, a seasoned politician, is the favorite

• who is she ? At 47, Liz Truss has a long and sometimes brutal political career behind her. Coming from a very left-wing family, he first campaigned for the centrist Liberal Democrats before joining the Conservative Party, becoming the MP for Norfolk South West in 2010. Since 2012, he has held chain positions in ministries such as education, environment or justice, before becoming Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Liz Truss has suffered a backlash and is popular with the majority, fond of provoking comparisons with former prime minister Margaret Thatcher. she He almost lost his parliamentary candidacy due to an extramarital affair and was sacked by Theresa May after a difficult passage in the judiciary.

He may have also paid for his vote against Brexit in 2016. But he became one of its staunch supporters, negotiating new free trade agreements in the field of international trade. Appointed as head of British diplomacy in 2021 – a way for Boris Johnson to rein in his ambitions – he is undecided against the EU in Northern Ireland, and shares with Boris Johnson his determination against Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

• What does it offer? “Like Boris Johnson, despite being in government for eight years, he espouses the idea of ​​an elitism to be opposed and portrays himself as outside the establishment.” Deciphers for AFP Tim Bale, Professor at Queen Mary University of London. During the last debate between him and Rishi Sunak on 31 August, he announced that if he was elected, he would be elected. “Pay attention[it] Energy prices for consumers and how to revive the UK economy”.

He has also promised to cut taxes to stimulate growth, but has yet to say how he will help Britons cope with rising bills this winter. Other proposals: Liz Truss wants to replace all laws inherited from the EU, preaches deregulation, free trade and calls on conservatives to be ambitious.

• What are his chances of winning? Strong. Fewer than 200,000 members, mainly older and white, will decide between the finalists to succeed Boris Johnson and the minister charmed with the enthusiasm of those who have changed the base of the ruling party. It is deducted by polling agencies.

Rishi Sunak, a wealthy technologist and former finance minister

• Who is he? If this grandson of Indian immigrants He likes to highlight his childhood as the son of a doctor and pharmacist in the port city of Southampton in the south of England, where he attended a prestigious private school for boys, then Oxford. He completed his studies at Stanford University in California, where he met his wife Akshata Murthy, the daughter of an Indian multi-billionaire, who later worked for Goldman Sachs in banking and investment funds.

In 2015, he was elected MP, parachuted into an easy constituency in Yorkshire, and was immediately considered a potential Prime Minister. Five years later, at the age of 39, he assumed the post of finance minister just before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and gained notoriety by distributing massive aid to the economy.

• What does it offer? Liz charged at Truss “Promise the Moon to All”, Rishi Sunak highlighted his own record as finance minister during the pandemic as evidence of his ability to deal with crises. During the last debate with his opponent, Rishi Sunak believed that Liz Truss’s tax cut plans were too bold and promised to keep inflation under control as his priority.

• What are his chances of winning? Weak. However Rishi Sunak had the preference of representatives during the first rounds. The 42-year-old former finance minister, who has a reputation as a eloquent orator, gave lessons after sticking to budgetary orthodoxy during the economic crisis and changing his mind in the face of criticism. Rishi is Sunak “A bit fragile, he gives the impression of being uncomfortable under pressure”, analysis for AFP John Curtis, political scientist at the University of Strathclyde. He suffered from an image of a traitor who precipitated the downfall of Boris Johnson by leaving the government. While prices are rising, his lifestyle, his expensive clothes and his possessions show that he is cut off from the people who are struggling with a severe economic crisis.