Britain’s next Prime Minister to be announced

The United Kingdom will learn today who will be its next prime minister, with Liz Truss the favorite expected to succeed Boris Johnson and take charge as the country battles a spiraling cost-of-living crisis.

The result will be announced at 12:30 PM UK time today, which will be at 5 PM Indian Standard Time.

Foreign minister Truss and her rival, former finance minister Rishi Sunak, spent the summer rallying support among the Conservative Party members who will cast the final vote.

If she wins, Truss will become the UK’s third female prime minister following Theresa May and Margaret Thatcher.

The 47-year-old has consistently been ahead of 42-year-old Mr Sunak in polling among the estimated 200,000 Tory members eligible to vote.

The leadership contest began in July after Johnson announced his resignation following a slew of scandals and resignations from his government.

Postal and online voting closed Friday after eight weeks of campaigning that Truss described to media as “the longest job interview in history”.

The vote may not reflect general public opinion, however, a YouGov poll in late August found 52 percent thought Truss would make a “poor” or “terrible” prime minister.

Forty-three percent said they did not trust her “at all” to deal with the burning issue of the rise in the cost of living.

The UK is gripped by its worst cost-of-living crisis in generations, with inflation soaring into double digits and energy prices shooting up on the back of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Millions say that with bills set to rise by 80 percent from October — and even higher from January — they face a painful choice between eating and heating this winter, according to surveys.