They are the only two to claim Boris Johnson’s seat. The former British prime minister was forced to resign as head of the Conservative Party in early July after sixty exits from government. Foreign Minister Liz Truss is favored by pollsters to face her rival Rishi Sunak. A postal and online poll of 200,000 party members that began in early August ended on Friday. The winner will be announced on Monday, September 5 and will be installed the following day.

Francinfo presents two contenders for Downing Street.

A seasoned politician, Liz became Truss’ favourite

• who is she ? At 47, Liz Truss has a long and sometimes difficult political career behind her. Coming from a very left-wing family, she first campaigned for the centrist Liberal Democrat Party before joining the Conservatives, for whom she became MP for South West Norfolk in 2010. Since 2012, she has held posts in the Ministries of Education, Environment or Justice before becoming Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Liz Truss, who likes to fuel comparisons with former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, has also faced backlash. she He almost lost a legislative nomination after an extramarital affair, and Theresa May was demoted after a difficult pass at the judiciary.

She could have paid for her vote against Brexit in 2016. But new free trade agreements were negotiated and discussed at the Department for International Trade. Appointed as Britain’s foreign minister in 2021 – a way to rein in Boris Johnson’s ambitions – she is staunch on the EU in Northern Ireland and has taken a firm stance against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine with Boris Johnson.

• What does it offer? “Like Boris Johnson, they promote the idea of ​​an elite to be opposed, portraying themselves as outside the establishment despite being in government for eight years” Deciphered by AFP Tim Bale, a professor at Queen Mary University of London. During the final debate between her and Rishi Sunak on 31 August, she announced that if she was elected, she would. “Concentrate[it] About energy prices for consumers and how to revive the UK economy.

She has pledged to cut taxes to boost growth, but has yet to say how she will help Britons cope with rising bills this winter. Other proposals: Lis Truss wants to change all the rules inherited from the EU, preaches deregulation and free trade and invites conservatives to show ambition.

• What are his chances of success? strong The minister has drawn on the enthusiasm of what has become the base of the party in power, and these fewer than 200,000 members, mainly older and white, decide the final contenders to succeed Boris Johnson. Polling firms like it.

Rich technologist and former finance minister Rishi Sunak

• who is he ? If this grandson of Indian immigrants Likes to highlight his childhood as the son of a doctor and pharmacist in Southampton, a port in southern England, he attended a prestigious private school for boys and 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, and then worked at Goldman Sachs Bank and investment funds.

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

• What does it offer? Liz blames Truss “Promise the Moon to All”, Rishi Sunak highlighted his own record as finance minister during the pandemic as proof of his ability to overcome adversity. During the last debate with his opponent, Rishi Sunak assured that controlling inflation would be his priority, believing that the tax cut plans of Liz Truss were too bold.

• What are his chances of success? fragile However, in the first rounds, Rishi Sunak had the preference of deputies. The 42-year-old former finance minister, who has a reputation as a great orator, has appeared to deliver lessons in the wake of the financial crisis by sticking to budgetary conservatism, while changing his mind in the face of criticism. Rishi is Sunak “Slightly brittle, gives the impression that he’s nervous under pressure”, AFP Analysis by John Curtis, University of Strathclyde political scientist. He also suffered the image of a traitor who left the government and contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. As prices soar, his lifestyle, with expensive clothes and possessions, has cut him off from a crowd struggling with a serious financial crisis.