The incredible non-election of a British Prime Minister

Oct 26, 2022 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

Kaieteur News – Mr. Rishi Sunak has created history which is not likely to be repeated in the distant future. How could someone become prime minister of their country at a time when he was not a Cabinet member and did not face a vote from either his fellow MPs or the membership of his party?

The pattern throughout the 20th and 21st century is for a high ranking Cabinet member to succeed the prime minister or president in case of death, serious illness or resignation. If this pattern is rejected by party leaders because they cannot decide among themselves then the vote is put to the parliamentary party or a special congress is called or the party general membership makes the final decision.

In the case of Rishi Sunak, he did not win a vote among his parliamentarians. There was no vote. In a strange system that may border on democratic caricature, the Conservative party decided that to enter the race, you must secure 100 nominations from your fellow parliamentarians. If more than one contender acquires 100 endorsements, then the contest moves to the national party members who decide. No other candidate secured 100 but Sunak so he was proclaimed.

Critics of the system argued that the right, sensible and decent thing to do was to let the general membership vote which is how Ms. Truss became prime minister. The reality is that Mr. Sunak did not face any type of competition.

His closest rival got 90 nominations. The esoteric thing about this system is why was the figure of 100 arrived at? As one of the world’s most enduring democracies, Britain slipped up badly in the way Mr. Sunak became prime minister. Some of the world’s most democratic nations have some deep flaws that make you wonder what they can teach the post-colonial world. In the US a presidential contender can win the popular vote yet not succeed because it is a mysterious thing called the Electoral College that decides who becomes the president.

Mr. Sunak is now walking on thin ice. Inside his own party, there are powerful figures that reject him because of the route that was used to become prime minister. All other parties including the leaders of the ruling party in the Scottish Government believe that when Madam Truss resigned the Conservative Party should have called a general election.

The academics will now join the debate. Does Sunak have a mandate to govern? Using my understanding of natural justice and the essence of democracy, I would say no. Here is what I think the pathways should have been.

There should have been a face- off between candidates and the general membership of the Conservative Party should have decided. If that formula was not acceptable then the MPs should have voted in a contest between any number of candidates. Who got the most votes wins.

One can argue that Sunak won because he secured more nominations but the question that will remain is why was the 100 number the definitive requirement? Why not 50 or 60?

There are 357 Conservative Party MPs. Mr. Sunak got 193. That meant 164 MPs did not favour Mr. Sunak. That meant 44. 1 percent did not favour Sunak. Why was a percentage point not established, meaning that to become prime minister a candidate had to secure 60 percent of his/her parliamentary colleagues?

Another question is why wasn’t there allowed a vote among MPs once there were multiple candidates? Let them debate then let the parliamentarians decide. You see once there is a debate, the people who made the original nominations may shift ground and go over to a personality they did not originally endorse. Of course no argument can defeat the thesis that the general membership was the most democratic mechanism to adopt.

It is doubtful Mr. Sunak will enjoy the confidence of his party and the British public in general. A prime minister or a president should not have arrived at the apex, the way he did. It must be remembered that just weeks ago, Mr. Sunak was rejected for the PM post by the party members. He was beaten by Ms. Truss.

He should have faced his party members again. If he survives is anyone’s guess but the way he became prime minister will lead to endless debate about what is happening in many democratic countries and what these older democracies can teach newer democracies in the Third World. I am not a supporter of Mr. Sunak. I support the Labour Party in the UK. The colour and ethnicity of Mr. Sunak is of no interest to me. I believe there were White candidates that are better politicians than him.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not this newspaper.)

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The incredible non-election of a British Prime Minister

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