Liz Truss quit on Thursday after the shortest, most chaotic tenure of any British prime minister, forced out after her economic program shattered the country's reputation for financial stability and left many people poorer.
The Conservative Party, which holds a big majority in parliament and need not call a nationwide election for another two years, will now elect a new leader by Oct. 28 — Britain's fifth prime minister in six years.
That contest is likely to pit former finance minister Rishi Sunak against Penny Mordaunt, but could also see the return of Boris Johnson, who was ousted as prime minister in July when his ministers resigned en masse to force him out of office.