After the announced resignation of Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon, the battle for succession begins. The Executive Committee of Sturgeon’s Scottish National Party (SNP) was due to meet on Thursday to set a timetable.
A decision is expected by the end of March at the earliest. The 52-year-old’s resignation as party leader and “First Minister” came as a surprise, as there are no natural successor candidates.
Possible candidates are SNP Vice Keith Brown, Treasury Secretary Kate Forbes, Health Secretary Humza Yousaf, Constitutional Secretary Angus Robertson and Deputy Prime Minister John Swinney. However, they only achieve single-digit values in the first surveys. Sturgeon had announced that she would not make any recommendations.
Labor party could benefit from retreat
Dozens of supporters of the union with the United Kingdom celebrated the withdrawal in Glasgow on Wednesday evening. Sturgeon is considered the driving force behind the independence movement. Supporters of a detachment now see such a step as a long way off.
The Labor Party in particular could benefit from the resignation. The largest opposition party in the British House of Commons, which is against independence, had lost many votes in Scotland in recent years to Sturgeon’s SNP, which represents similar social democratic positions. Now Labor could be the beneficiary of a possible leadership dispute in the SNP and move closer to a clear victory in the 2024 UK general election.
