After Boris Johnson’s resignation as British Prime Minister from scandal pressure several days ago, the already resigned Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak against one-time accountant turned Foreign Secretary Liz Truss are battling it out to become the next Prime Minister of England. They are neck and neck in the race!
Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) in Oxford England is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs since 2021 and as Minister for Women and Equalities since 2019.
Rishi Sunak born 1980 is a British politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022, having previously been the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Sunak was born in Southampton, England to Punjabi Hindu parents who had been raised in the Indian diaspora in Southeast Africa, Sunak was educated at Winchester College.
To many, Sunak simply has friends who are “aristocrats” and from the “upper class”, but not from the “working class”. Moreover, according to a recent YouGov study, 40 percent consider him to be incompetent. Yet, he is among the final three contestants and Johnson’s most likely successor. Prior to moving into politics, Sunak studied at Oxford and Stanford before working as an analyst at Goldman Sachs investment bank and then as a hedge fund manager. He became known to the public when Johnson made him the Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2020.
Truss has undergone a political evolution from Liberal Democrat to Conservative, and then from supporting Britain's membership in the European Union to becoming one of the hardest-line Brexiteers in the Cabinet. On social issues, she has also taken an increasingly strident stance against what she perceives as excessively progressive positions on issues such as race, sex and gender. In Johnson's government, she has also taken photos directly evoking Thatcher, from wearing similar clothes to recreating famous pictures, such as that of her riding in a tank. She was an early adopter and avid user of social media.
Both have strong views against the Chinese regime and its support towards Russia in the Ukraine war. They went head-to-head in a debate two days ago. Seen to overshadow Truss, Sunak spoke over her repeatedly trying to dominate before she could get her say. Eventually, Liz stood up to him and put him in his place. What started out several days ago as Sunak in first place and Truss in 5th, has ongoingly changed position and now it seems that Truss is potentially the favorite.
Take care!
Prof. Carl Boniface
Vocabulary builder:
Neck and neck (adv) = close, too close to call, even-steven, with nothing to choose between, level pegging, equal
Evoking (v) = suggesting, inducing, arousing, reminding, conjuring, bring to mind, stir up
Head-to-head (adj) = discussion, dialog, confrontation, one-on-one, face-to-face, direct, adjacent, together, intimate, personal