British PM Theresa May expected to announce that she will quit: The Times

British Prime Minister Theresa May is expected on Friday to announce her departure from office, The Times reported, without citing a source.

May will remain as prime minister while her successor is elected in a two-stage process under which two final candidates face a ballot of 125,000 Conservative Party members, the newspaper said.

A number of weary Conservative lawmakers are calling for Theresa May to step down, as pressure on the embattled Prime Minister grows.

Writing in the Financial Times today, Tom Tugendhat said: “There is one last chance to get (Brexit) right and leave in an orderly fashion. But it is now time for Prime Minister Theresa May to go — and without delay.”

“She must announce her resignation after Thursday’s European elections. And the Conservative party must fast track the leadership process to replace her,” he added.

That came hours after Tim Loughton said he wrote to Graham Brady, the chair of the 1922 Committee, urging a new leadership election.

A Conservative MP said that the 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers had not agreed to change the party’s leadership rules, but that Chairman of the committee Sir Graham Brady would meet with the Prime Minister on Friday to discuss her future.

That means Theresa May survives for now. She remains immune to another leadership challenge until December, because current party rules don’t allow for more than one effort to oust a leader in the space of 12 months.

But Friday’s meeting will likely be a showdown over May’s future, and it’s looking increasingly likely that the rest of her tenure can be measured in days, not weeks.

Report from CNN and Reuters