Indian-origin Rishi Sunak among front runners for UK PM post

London, July 07: Amid the buzz of Boris Johnson quitting today, all eyes would be on his successor, whose name is likely to be announced in a day or two. So who are the candidates that could stand to replace Boris Johnson?

Braverman, 42, is so far the only Tory MP to formally declare her leadership bid. Others expected to join the race include Zahawi and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, with Rishi Sunak and former Health Secretary Sajid Javid among some of the others seen as likely contenders.

Indian-origin Home Secretary Priti Patel is also among the names touted along with UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.

Among the more junior members, Tory MPs Penny Mordaunt, Tom Tugendhat, and former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt are the names doing the rounds.

According to The Spectator, a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs, two candidates Penny Mordaunt and Rishi Sunak, at 22% each, are bookies' favorites to be the 78th premier of the UK.

Indian-origin leader Rishi Sunak, 42, was picked by Boris Johnson and appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer his first full cabinet position in February 2020. If elected, he will be the first Indian-origin man to be a British PM.

Johnson, 58, will remain in charge at 10 Downing Street until the process of electing a new leader is completed by the time of the Conservative Party conference, scheduled for October. He is expected to formally announce his resignation and address the nation later on Thursday.

How UK PM will be chosen?

After Boris Jonson's exit, a process will now be held to find a new leader. The 1922 Committee is responsible for setting the timetable for a Tory leadership contest.

To take part in the race, a Tory MP has to be nominated by eight colleagues.

If more than two MPs put themselves forward and secure enough nominations to run for leader, a series of secret ballots are held to whittle them down.

This process is repeated until there are two candidates remaining. The final two candidates are then put to a postal ballot of the wider Conservative Party membership, with the winner named the new leader.

The leader of the party with a majority in the House of Commons is the de facto prime minister.