Humza Yousaf is set to become Scotland’s youngest first minister and the first person from a minority ethnic background to hold the post after he was elected SNP leader.
After a sometimes fiery and divisive leadership contest, SNP members chose Yousaf, 37, as their party’s new leader, succeeding Nicola Sturgeon.
The current Scottish Health Secretary is expected to be declared Scotland’s sixth first minister after a vote in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday.
© PASturgeon, who was Scotland’s longest-serving first minister, announced last month she was stepping down after more than eight years in the job.
Yousaf succeeds her after defeating the current Scottish Finance Secretary Kate Forbes and former community safety minister Ash Regan in what was the SNP’s first leadership contest for almost 20 years.
👏 Congratulations to @HumzaYousaf, elected as the new leader of the SNP and Scotland's next First Minister.
🏴 Together, let's get on with building a better Scotland. #SNPLeadership23 pic.twitter.com/6jw1zTBsGP
— The SNP (@theSNP) March 27, 2023
The result was announced at the BT Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh after the ballot of SNP members closed at noon, with a turnout of 70%.
For first preferences in the single transferrable vote system, Yousaf took 24,336 (48%), Forbes took 20,559 (40%) and Regan took 5,599 (11%) of the vote.
When second preferences were distributed in the second stage, Yousaf took 26,032 (52%) and Forbes took 23,890 (48%).
Yousaf said: “It is hard for me to find the words to describe just how honoured I am to be entrusted by our membership of the SNP to be the party’s next leader and to be on the cusp of being our country’s next first minister.”
He paid tribute to Forbes and Regan, adding: “It’s felt we’ve seen each other more than our respective families.
“You both have put in an incredible shift and I know that collectively we will work hard as part of Team SNP.
He said it is now time for the SNP to come together and deliver independence.
© PA“Leadership elections, by their very nature, can be bruising,” he said.
“However, in the SNP we are a family.
“Over the last five weeks we may have been competitors or supporters of different candidates.
“We are no longer team Humza, or team Ash, or team Kate, we are one team.
“We will be the team, we will be the generation, that delivers independence for Scotland.”
I pay tribute to all 3 candidates for @theSNP leadership for rising to the challenge.
Most of all I congratulate @HumzaYousaf and wish him every success. He will be an outstanding leader & First Minister and I could not be prouder to have him succeed me.— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) March 27, 2023
He added: “I feel like the luckiest man in the world to be standing here as leader of the SNP.
“A party I joined almost 20 years and that I love so dearly.”
Yousaf paid tribute to the late Labour leader John Smith in his victory speech and said it was “the greatest honour and privilege of my life” to be the next first minister, should Parliament decide to elect him.
Congratulations to @HumzaYousaf on his election as @theSNP leader.
My full statement below 👇 pic.twitter.com/19nRtI1eRG
— Anas Sarwar (@AnasSarwar) March 27, 2023
Viewed as the continuity candidate, Yousaf had greater levels of public support from SNP parliamentarians at both Holyrood and Westminster than the other candidates, with high-profile backers including outgoing Deputy First Minister John Swinney, and new SNP Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn.
Yousaf was first elected in 2011 as a regional MSP for Glasgow and was appointed a junior minister the following year, becoming Justice Secretary in 2018.
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