The UK’s ruling Labour Party announced on the 17th that Burnham has been elected as the party’s new leader.
The nomination results for the party leadership election released by Labour show that Burnham received the support of 379 Labour MPs. Since Burnham was the only candidate to meet the nomination threshold, there was no need for a party-wide ballot, and he was elected leader directly.
According to British media reports, Burnham is expected to succeed Starmer as UK Prime Minister on the 20th, after Starmer formally resigns that day.
King Charles III of the United Kingdom will then invite Burnham to form a new government. Since Labour currently holds a majority in the House of Commons, there is no need for a nationwide election to change the prime minister.
Burnham, 56, has previously served as UK Secretary of State for Culture, and Secretary of State for Health, among other roles, and from 2017 until June this year served as Mayor of Greater Manchester. In June this year, he won a by-election in the Makerfield constituency, returning to the House of Commons.