Boris Johnson, poised to replace David Cameron as prime minister, emerges as big winner from Brexit
Cameron said a new leader should be chosen before the party conference in October and some betting companies made Johnson an instant favourite.
Boris Johnson emerged on Friday as perhaps the biggest winner in Britain’s shock move away from the European Union.
The shaggy-haired and buffoonish former London mayor stands out as a possible successor to David Cameron, who announced Friday he will resign after failing to convince Britons to remain in the EU.
Johnson struck a statesmanlike pose Friday, not speaking publicly until Cameron had resigned and informed Queen Elizabeth about his decision. Then he used a brief speech to proclaim a proud new day for Britain without announcing an interest in becoming Conservative Party leader and prime minister.
He’s [Johnson] got huge momentum behind him ... he was seen as the face of the victorious leave campaign
In part, that’s because he didn’t have to. It’s widely assumed that Johnson, 52, has his eye on the prime minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street.
Cameron said a new leader should be chosen before the party conference in October and some betting companies made Johnson an instant favourite.
Political scientist Tim Bale at Queen Mary, University of London, said Johnson is the leading candidate because of the positive publicity generated by his performance at the helm of the “leave” campaign during the EU referendum.
“Clearly I think Boris Johnson has to be the favourite,” Bale said. “He’s got huge momentum behind him. I think he was seen as the face of the victorious leave campaign. He has an awful lot of support in the Conservative Party membership.”
If the EU referendum gives him a pathway to the top spot, it will be a huge pay off for Johnson’s risky decision to break his long-time alliance with Cameron and align himself instead with Nigel Farage, the eurosceptic leader of the UK Independence Party, which has only one member of Parliament.