10 quick facts about new UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak

United Kingdom’s former finance minister, Rishi Sunak has emerged as the country’s third prime minister in less than two months, following the resignation of Liz Truss after just six weeks in office.

Rishi Sunak who had earlier contested and lost to Liz Truss in this year’s conservative primary election to succeed the then-prime minister, Boris Johnson, will now take over as the prime minister at a time the country is facing enormous economic challenges.

He emerged as the new conservative Party leader  after defeating centrist politician Penny Mordaunt, who failed to secure enough backing from lawmakers to enter the ballot. 

He was subsequently announced as the new leader of the UK in a tweet on the Conservative’s Twitter handle on Monday.

Here are some quick facts to know about the new United Kingdom Prime Minister.

1. He was born in the Port-city of Southampton, England on  12 May 1980 to parents of Indian descent who migrated to Britain from East Africa in the 1960s.
2. He studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at Lincoln College, Oxford and also earned an MBA from Stanford University.
3. He married Akshata Narayan Murty, a British-based Indian fashion designer and daughter of Indian billionaire, N. R. Narayana Murthy in 2009.
4. He has been a member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond (Yorks) since 2015.
5. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 before quitting in 2022 citing a different approach to the Economy between him and the then Prime Minister, Boris Johnson.
6. At just 42, he is the youngest UK Prime Minister in more than a century.
7. He is the first ever British-Asian Prime Minister of the UK.
8.  In July 2022, he contested the Conservative party leadership election to replace Johnson and lost to Liz Truss.
9. He practices Hinduism
10. He emerged as the 57th United Kingdom Prime Minister on October 24, 2022.