LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) – Andy Burnham is on the brink of becoming Britain’s next prime minister after an overwhelming show of support from Labour lawmakers left him all but certain to replace Keir Starmer.
Burnham said he had received nominations from 322 out of the 403 Labour members of parliament on the first day of nominations on Thursday, leaving him one short of ensuring he can be the only candidate.
“It’s all starting to feel very real,” Burnham said in a short video clip announcing he had nominated himself.
The nominations for the Labour leadership close next Thursday. Burnham is expected to be formally anointed as Labour leader next Friday and will be officially named as prime minister on July 20.
Once Burnham reaches 323 nominations, no other candidate would be able to secure the backing of the 81 needed to enter the contest to replace Starmer.
Some Labour members of parliament say they were not able to vote on Thursday but will back Burnham once they return to parliament on Monday.
Burnham’s path to the leadership was effectively secured on Wednesday night when Al Carns, the former junior defence minister, said he would not stand against him.
Starmer announced his resignation last month after a poor performance in local elections in May prompted growing calls from lawmakers for a change of leadership and direction.
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, editing by William James)
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