London - Prime Minister Boris Johnson faced a confidence vote on Monday by Conservative MPs from 18:00 to 20:00 BST, with the result at 21:00, after a growing number of lawmakers in his Conservative Party questioned the British leader's authority over what has been dubbed the "partygate" scandal.

If he loses among the 359 Conservative lawmakers, Boris risks standing down as prime minister. The vote was triggered after at least 54 Conservative MPs asked for it.

Regardless of the outcome, the fact that enough lawmakers are demanding such a vote represents a watershed moment for Johnson. It is also a sign of deep Conservative divisions, less than three years after Johnson led the party to its biggest election victory in decades.

Conservative Party official Graham Brady announced Monday that he had received letters calling for a no-confidence vote from at least 54 Tory legislators, enough to trigger the measure under party rules.

“The threshold of 15% (of Conservatives in the House of Commons) has been passed,” Brady said. He said the vote would take place in the Commons on Monday evening, with the result announced soon after.

Discontent that has been building for months erupted after a 10-day parliamentary break that included a long weekend of celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. For many, the four-day holiday was a chance to relax — but there was no respite for Johnson, who was booed by some onlookers as he arrived for a service in the queen’s honor at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday.

In letters sent out to Conservative lawmakers, Johnson made a point, urging them to support him.

Johnson, or his possible successor, face a raft of problems. British households are confronted by the biggest cost-of-living squeeze since records began in the 1950s, with food and fuel prices surging while wages lag.
-Ap/Reuters/BBC