Bookies name Truss as favorite in UK Prime Minister race

London: Bookmakers in the United Kingdom are predicting that Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will beat the current front-runner, ex-Chancellor Rishi Sunak, in the final round of the election of the UK Conservative Party leader, who will also become the next prime minister.
Earlier in the day, the UK saw the fifth round of the voting, with Sunak coming first with 137 votes and Truss outstripping the third candidate, junior trade minister Penny Mordaunt, with 113 votes to 105.
According to Ladbrokes and Paddy Power gambling companies, Truss is the betting favorite of the runoff. The Ladbrokes had Truss at odds of 4/7 to win the election; in other words, there is a roughly 63% chance that she will emerge victorious, according to the bookmaker. In contrast, Sunak is 11/8 (around 42%) to become Boris Johnson’s successor. These odds mean that the bettor can expect to win 11 pounds ($13.17) for every 8 pounds waged.
Paddy Power, another prominent UK bookmaker, also has Truss ahead with odds of 8/15 (a 65% chance of victory) against Sunak with 5/4 (44%), Sky News broadcaster reported.
Now all Conservative party members, and there are around 200,000 of them, will cast their ballots for their favorite candidate by mail. The final results are expected on September 5, when the parliament resumes work after the summer break.
A total of 11 candidates initially announced their nomination for the prime minister’s seat after Johnson announced his resignation on July 7.
(UNI/SPUTNIK)