Boris Johnson Is New PM: Vows To Get Brexit Done
Boris Johnson becomes the new Prime Minister after gaining 92,153 votes from members of the ruling party, while his rival, Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt, gained 46,656.
The Brexit hardliner is ready to take over Theresa May’s post on Wednesday.
In his victory speech, the former London mayor said his campaign message was heard loud and clear by the voters. His message was to deliver Brexit and to unite the country.
“Do you look daunted? Do you feel daunted? I don’t think you look remotely daunted to me,” Johnson told party members at the Queen Elizabeth ll conference center in London.
“We are going to get Brexit done.”
In an interview, former May’s spokesman said that Johnson remained a divisive figure in large parts of the United Kingdom.
“I wondered if we might see a different Boris Johnson in this particular speech. A bit more sober, with the mantle of power and prime ministerial authority descending on to him.
“And I think he was actually very true to himself. It was quite serious and yet still with the big rhetorical flourishes. He wants to be true to Boris.”
Johnson pledged to present a new Brexit divorce deal to the European Union before the October 31 deadline and try to force the EU’s negotiators to revise agreement.
“We will of course be pushing our plan into action, and getting ready to come out on October 31, come what may … do or die, come what may,” Johnson told Talk Radio last month.
EU leaders expressed their willingness to work with Johnson on the ratification of the Brexit withdrawal deal signed by Theresa May.
“We look forward to working constructively with PM Boris Johnson when he takes office, to facilitate the ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement and achieve an orderly Brexit,” EU negotiator Michel Barnier said on Twitter after Johnson’s victory was confirmed.
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