Challengers Out, Super-Rich Rishi Sunak Selected — Not Elected — UK PM

by Stephen Lendman

According to the London Guardian:

Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, have a combined net worth of "about £730 million," the Guardian asking:

Is he "too (super)-rich to be PM" at a time when the vast majority of Brits are struggling to cope with double-digit inflation and increasing hard times?

After disgraced and replaced BoJo dropped out of the race on Sunday to once again become PM, former chancellor Sunak appears poised to be No. 10's latest occupant.

His selection by Tory party members appears imminent.

His key challenger, Penny Mordaunt, hasn't gotten the required 100 nominations from Tory MPs so far.

With over 160 nominations, Sunak's lead looks insurmountable.

Yet Toy MP, Christopher Chope, accused Sunak of undermining BoJo and Truss, adding:

He can't expect party loyalty.

Tories have an "ungovernable" party.

That's "why (BoJo) pulled out."

Sunak didn't support him.

Until defrocked and ousted, BoJo had a Tory party mandate to serve as PM.

Sunak lacks it, Chope saying:

"(W)e now have the prospect of having a Conservative party leader who doesn't have the mandate from the country and won't even have a mandate from the membership."

Calling for a general election — what Tories won't hold because Labor will win overwhelmingly — Chope warned that without one, party politics will "go from bad to worse."

"We're going to have continuing rebellions as we try to change policies."

According to a weeks earlier YouGov poll, only 25% of Brits "have a positive opinion" of Sunak.

An earlier Deltapoll survey found Mordaunt to be more trustworthy.

According to her campaign, she's "the only candidate who can unite the country and restore trust in government (sic)."

Yet by Monday PM local time, Tories may name Sunak PM.

The Guardian asked:

Does he have what it takes "to decontaminate" the political, economic and financial mess left him by Truss?

Without a mandate, he faces daunting challenges at a time when two PMs were ousted weeks apart.

In early October, political commentator, Andrew Rawnsley, called BoJo "slow-poisoning arsenic, Truss instant cyanide."

Over the weekend before dropping out Sunday night, he said if Tories bring back BoJo, it'll "be fit only for a straight-jacket."

Earlier he said the following about Sunak:

"(S)hielding (his) family's fortune…from tax collectors…smell(s) rotten."

He "ooz(es) entitlement."

"(H)ow could he expect the public not to be outraged?"

"There's a pattern to the behavior of (Tory rule)."

"Its leaders demand painful sacrifices of everyone else while claiming special privileges for themselves."

"There's one rule for them."

"There's another for the little people."

"That's how they act because that's how they think."

As for Sunak, "(t)o counter the portrait of him as an entitled elitist cocooned in privilege, he sold his family history as a kind of rags-to-riches story."

As of midday Monday local time, Sunak has majority Tory support.

Well ahead of key rival Mordaunt, he appears a shoe-in to replace defrocked and disgraced Truss.

At 2:00PM local time Monday, nominations close.

Candidates for PM need at least 100 nominations to remain in the race.

If only one reaches this threshold, a new PM is chosen.

If two candidates reach it, Tory MPs will vote from 3:30 - 5:30PM to indicate their preference.

At 6:00PM, the vote count will be announced.

If two candidates remain in the race, Tory party members will vote online for a new PM, their choice to be announced on Friday.

What Britain calls democracy in action exists in fantasy form as in the US and throughout the West.

The real thing is banned.

A Final Comment

On Monday, Mordaunt dropped out of the race, saying:

"Rishi has my full support."

The path is clear for him to become Britain's PM.

Only the formality of selecting him remains ahead.