What you need to know about the future leader of Britain
Now that the last contender has dropped out of the race, Theresa May is running unopposed for the leadership of Britain. But who exactly is Theresa may?
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May is now running unopposed as Andrea Leadsom withdraws
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A “liberal conservative” She supports strengthening police powers and anti-terror at all costs, but also supports gay marriage
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She has been the Home Secretary and been involved in multiple scandals
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She is deeply anti-immigrant, and refused to release a prisoner even when ordered to by the court
In a whirlwind since the Brexit vote, Britain has gone through a tremendous amount of change. prime Minister David Cameron has resigned following his failure to rally the British people to remain in the EU. Additionally, one of the leaders of the leave campaign, Nigel Farage has walked back claims about NHS funding and has withdrawn from life as an MP, electing to go back into the world of business, leaving the British people holding the bag.
The vote on who will take up the mantle for the future of Britain was a disappointing race, notably because Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage decided not to run. After rounds of voting and discussion that dropped Michael Gove and now Andres Leadsom, only one person remains: Theresa May
Theresa May, age 59, is an MP from Maidenhead who currently serves as the Home Secretary, a position she has held since 2010. May, who graduated from Oxford with a degree in Geography, began her career at the Bank of England, and then at the Association for Payment Clearing Services where she was Head of European Affairs. She then began a push into politics, being elected on her third try (defeated in 1992 and 1994) and serving as a member of the Conservative party.
What Has She Done?
May has a very divided history, as she is often labeled a “liberal conservative”. This is evident with her curtailing of surveillance programs, elimination of tracking databases, but also praising police for using water cannons to disperse protesters who were protesting high tuition fees. She has also openly supported the detention of David Miranda, the partner of journalist Glenn Greenwald. Glenn Greenwald was the reporter who communicated and published the evidence leaked by Edward Snowden. Miranda had done nothing wrong, but was detained as a way to intimidate Greenwald, with Theresa May saying to defenders of Miranda to “think about what they are condoning”.
May is staunchly in support of the Police force and doing anything she can to make their job easier. She is also staunchly ant-immigrant, and was reprimanded by the courts for detaining an Algerian in a detention center, despite being ordered by the courts to release the prisoner.
She is also supportive of same-sex marriage via a YouTube video filmed in 2012 with Out4Marriage.
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May has no children, which became a huge piece of controversy which ultimately won her the election, as she was attacked by Andrea Leadsom for not having kids. She is unable to have children for health reasons, and Andrea Leadsom said earlier this week that being a mother meant that she had “a very real stake” in the future of Britain. It is for this comment and others that Leadsom withdrew from the race on Monday, paving the way for Theresa May to inherit the highest political office in Britain.
The general consensus is that May is very much for Britain to be its own nation, which means she is likely to activate Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and ebgin the slow process of withdrawing from the EU. This will be a rough road ahead, and hopefully May is fit to lead.
Image: UK Home Office