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State & Ceremonial

Theresa May to become next UK Prime Minister as Andrea Leadsom withdraws from race

Theresa May will become the next British Prime Minister after her rival, Andrea Leadsom, withdrew from the race on Monday.

The Queen may have to return from her visit to Scotland early in order to oversee the handover from David Cameron to Mrs May.

After Margaret Thatcher, Mrs May is only the second female to hold the office of Prime Minister.

Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom were supposed to battle it out over the next few weeks to become both the Leader of the Conservative Party and PM.

Royal Central sources suggest that Mrs Leadsom has withdrawn from the race due to the amount of criticism she has received. She attracted controversy over the weekend after appearing to suggest that she would make a better a Prime Minister than Mrs May because she “has children”.

Andrea Leadsom withdrew from the race following heavy critisism (via Number 10 / Flickr CC

Andrea Leadsom withdrew from the race following heavy critisism (via Number 10 / Flickr CC

It is expected that the new Prime Minster will be officially appointed by Her Majesty the Queen within the next fortnight.

Mrs May, who is currently the Home Secretary, was the clear front runner after receiving 199 votes from MPs. Energy Minister, Mrs Leadsom finished with a total of 84 votes.

Around 150,000 Conservative party members were to decide who the winning candidate would be.

Mrs May takes over as Prime Minister after David Cameron announced his resignation after six years in office following the the UK voting to leave the European Union.

It is unclear whether there will be a General Election. Mrs May could call a snap election if the wants her own manifesto, rather than the one of her predecessor.

The 59-year-old will now be tasked with negotiating the UK’s exit from the EU. Mrs May was campaigned to remain in the EU, whereas Mrs Leadsom campaigned to leave

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