Rishi Sunak who was born and raised in Kitale, Kenya has been elected overwhelmingly by the Conservative party to become Britain’s first none white leader. The 42 year old is also the youngest prime minister in modern times

The former chancellor’s path to succeed Liz Truss was cleared on Sunday when ex-prime minister Boris Johnson abandoned his hopes of a comeback. Johnson had secured the public backing of just over 50 MPs but claimed he could have won the contest.

His path to ascension became clearer when Penny Mordaunt, who was the last remaining rival in the Conservative party after Liz Truss resigned failed to garner the support of at least 100 MPs to join the fray. She only got 90 endorsements which prompted her withdrawal from the race leaving Rishi Sunak in pole position for the office number 10 on Downing street.

Sunak is younger than both Tony Blair and David Cameron when they became prime ministers. He was born to parents of Indian origins who had lived in Kenya where he was born and raised before they emigrated to the UK.

Sunak rises to the office at a time when Britain’s financial system is in turmoil, high inflation, stretched public services, industrial unrest, soaring energy bills and a possibility of a blackout in the coming few months. These problems are further compounded by the raging war in Ukraine which has disrupted global supply chains.

Sanctions on Russia which is conducting what they call a special military operation in Ukraine has also disrupted the supply of energy to European countries.

Sunak, a fiscal conservative who has vowed to “fix the economy”, promised in a statement on Sunday: “There will be integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level of the government I lead.”