- Boris Johnson is a lead contender for replacing British Prime Minister Theresa May.
- On Wednesday, May announced she'd resign if Parliament agreed to her Brexit deal.
- Johnson has reportedly signaled that he will support May's deal after being one of her harshest critics.
- Johnson, the former mayor of London, served as May's foreign secretary for two years until he resigned in July 2018 in protest of her approach to the UK's departure from the EU.
Boris Johnson, the former mayor of London, led the campaign for Britain to leave the European Union. Now, he's being pegged as a leading contender for the UK's next prime minister amid a dramatic parliamentary debate over a Brexit deal.
Originally hailed as David Cameron's likely replacement as prime minister back in 2016, Johnson said he would not seek the position after his ally Michael Gove announced his own candidacy.
Theresa May ultimately won the position, and she picked Johnson to be the UK's foreign secretary. He resigned in 2018 over May's handling of Brexit negotiations.
Johnson is a clownish character, but he has been a prominent figure in British politics for some time and is known by his first name across the UK.
Here are some pictures of his life and rise to power, as well as some insights into what his future might look like.
A previous version of this article was written by Mike Bird.
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While at Oxford University, Boris was president of the Oxford Union, a position held by former Conservative leader William Hague and ex-Prime Minister Edward Heath.
Johnson went to Eton College and university with David Cameron, but Boris was much more obviously political at the time.
Johnson was sacked after a brief career at the London-based newspaper The Times, and he then worked for The Daily Telegraph as the paper's Brussels correspondent, gaining a name for himself in the center-right press.
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