Boris Johnson Resigns: Bet on the Next UK Prime Minister

United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson has resigned as British PM.

"I want to say to the millions of people who voted for us, thank you for that incredible mandate," Johnson said during his resignation speech.  

"Herd instinct is powerful (in the parliament) and when it moves, it moves," he added.

Johnson started appointing new ministers to his cabinet throughout the day, including a third education secretary in three days.

The last straw for Johnson came after his ministers and Conservative lawmakers quit or withdrew their support.  He appointed Greg Clark as 'levelling up' secretary and James Cleverly to the post of education minister.

UK Conservative Member of Parliament Steve Baker told CNN on Thursday that it is the "right decision" for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to step down as the Conservative Party leader. 

It’s a very very sad day today,” Baker said. “But honestly I’m relieved. He’s made the right decision. We now need to move swiftly to a leadership contest."

Baker was at 40-1 odds to replace Boris Johnson as PM.

BetOnline has listed odds on the next PM over the past several weeks.

Favorites include Liz Truss, Jeremy Hunt and Rishi Sunak. 

Also known as Elizabeth Truss, BetOnline has her as the odds-on favorite and with a decent price of $45 paid out on a $10 bet.

The foreign secretary is the darling of the Conservatives' grassroots and is regularly top of the polls of party members carried out by the website Conservative Home.

Andrew Macaskill of Reuters writes:

Truss has a carefully cultivated public image and was photographed in a tank last year, evoking a famous 1986 image of Britain's first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, who was also captured in such a pose.

The 46-year-old spent the first two years of Johnson's premiership as international trade secretary, championing Brexit, and last year was appointed as Britain's lead negotiator with the European Union.

Truss said on Monday Johnson has her "100% backing" and she urged colleagues to support him.

Truss is far from a "lock" though.

Jeremy Hunt was coming in at 5-1 odds.

He was viewed as being more outspoken when it came to urging Tory's MPs to vote "no confidence" regarding Johnson.

The former minister finished second to Johnson in the 2019 contest and has regularly warned that the Conservative party is in danger of losing the next election due to a lack of integrity.

- Alistair Prescott, Gambling911.com