Humza Yousaf officially elected as Scotland's new first minister
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Humza Yousaf officially replaces Nicola Sturgeon as the leader of SNP.
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Humza Yousaf speaks to the media after being voted the new First Minister at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland, Tuesday March 28, 2023. (Jane Barlow/PA via AP)
The head of the Scottish National Party (SNP), Humza Yousaf, has been officially voted in as First Minister of Scotland after a Scottish Parliament vote, Sky News reported on Tuesday.
Yesterday, following Nicola Sturgeon's resignation from the leadership position of the Scottish National Party in February, 37-year-old Humza Yousaf was elected as the new leader.
The Scottish Parliament's majority of members backed Yousaf's candidacy, despite the fact that Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sawar, Scottish Conservative Party leader, Douglas Ross, and Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, Alex Cole-Hamilton, also put forward their candidacies for the post, the broadcaster said.
Yousaf is set to be sworn in at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on Wednesday.
It is worth noting that he had previously served as transportation minister and justice secretary and currently holds the position of health minister.
His first rival who is not as popular, Ash Regan, was popularly ridiculed for her idea of creating a physical “readiness thermometer” before elections. His second rival Kate Forbes, who is notorious for being a Christian conservative, is assessed to be more popular nationally but less popular within the party due to her religious right-wing convictions.
Sturgeon, who is an opponent of Brexit and a supporter of Scotland's independence, tendered her resignation after almost a decade of holding the position.
Her surprising announcement shocked the British political scene as she announced that in "my head and in my heart," she knew that this is the right time to depart her role as First Minister and leader of the SNP.
She became the first woman to come to power in Scotland when she was elected in 2014 and pledged to pursue Scotland's independence from the United Kingdom.
Sturgeon garnered huge support for her party as she pushed for a new independence referendum after the first one that took place in September of 214 fell short of reaching the required target by over 10%.
Following the results, the UK government denied Scotland from carrying out another vote on the matter, insisting that it was a once-in-a-generation event.
Read: UK Supreme Court rejects Scottish independence referendum bid
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