British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday agreed to resign, bowing to political pressure after dozens of members of his Tory Party quit his government in recent days.
In a statement outside 10 Downing Street, Johnson conceded that it was “clearly the will” of his party that a new leader be named – though there is no timetable for when the party may choose a replacement or Johnson actually leave his position.
Months after succeeding Theresa May as prime minister three years ago, Johnson and his party won a landslide general election – something that he trumpeted in his exit speech on Thursday. He was credited with leading Britain out of the European Union and rolling out one of the world’s most successful mass vaccination campaigns to combat COVID-19.
But his personal behavior during the early days of the pandemic – and his prevarication about holding office parties in defiance of strict lockdowns that kept average citizens from even attending family funerals – led to a massive scandal from which he seemed unable to recover his political standing.
In recent weeks, Johnson’s credibility eroded further with disclosures that he knew about sexual misconduct allegations against deputy chief whip Chris Pincher before handing him the promotion; Pincher later resigned while denying that he had groped two young men in a club.