Liz Truss has been elected as Boris Johnson's replacement as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, becoming the country's third female Prime Minister after Johnson's resignation on July 7, 2022. After two months of campaigning, she defeated Rishi Sunak, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer (Finance Minister).
Truss entered the competition alongside ten other candidates, who were gradually reduced to two after Johnson resigned after losing the trust of many of his allies.
Johnson's government was embroiled in a number of scandals, including the Party Gate Scandal and allegations of corruption after a WhatsApp message revealed he had solicited donations from a member of his party to fund the refurbishment of his Downing Street residence.
Truss, 47, has promised to deliver £30 billion in tax cuts in an emergency budget later this month, arguing that the UK's tax burden is to blame for the country's slow growth. She has promised to create low-regulation investment zones and to increase defense spending by the most in decades. She also dropped a plan to tie public sector pay to local living costs, which was met with opposition from unions, Labour, and some Conservatives.
Truss had also promised to announce a plan to deal with soaring energy costs within a week if elected, adding that additional support would need to go "hand in hand" with a plan to boost domestic energy supplies, arguing that the UK had become too reliant on international markets.
She has served as foreign secretary and was the clear front-runner for the job. She clinched victory by appealing to the right-wing party faithful as a tax-cutting, anti-"woke" candidate who would take a hard line on post-Brexit dealings with the European Union.
She will be appointed prime minister by Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, breaking with tradition for the aging monarch, who has always performed the royal duty in London.
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