Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the UK, won a confidence vote taken by members of his Conservative Party on Monday.
Johnson faced the motion after a growing number of lawmakers in his party challenged the British leader’s authority over what has been called the “partygate” scandal.
Motions of no confidence in the UK are a means of testing support for the incumbent government and the legislature to remove the government from office.
Partygate is a political scandal in the UK about parties and other events by government staff held during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 when public health regulations banned most gatherings.
The parties led to accusations of hypocrisy and double standards, as many ordinary people could not gather with friends or even visit dying relatives.
Johnson’s Conservative Party holds 359 seats in the British Parliament, its most significant majority in decades. The result of the vote was 211-148.
Speaking with reporters after the vote, Johnson said, “I think it’s a convincing result, a decisive result, and what it means is that as a government, we can move on and focus on the stuff that I think really matters to people. It gives us the opportunity to continue to unite, to level up, and to strengthen our economy.”
The PM also said that he is not interested in holding a snap election to give the general public a chance to change the composition of the Parliament.
Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee in charge of confidence votes, said the rules prevent another vote of confidence against the PM for the following calendar year.
Brady also stated that he had received letters formally supporting the vote a week ago. Still, the Tory members of Parliament asked that their votes not be counted until after the Platinum Jubilee celebration ended on Sunday.
Johnson’s predecessor in the role, Teresa May, endured a confidence vote that former Labor Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn brought over May’s reported inability to promptly negotiate a Brexit deal.