LONDON (REUTERS) - British Prime Minister Theresa May formally notified her Conservative Party on Friday (June 7) that she had resigned as party leader, opening the way for a succession contest that will determine the country's next prime minister.

Mrs May will remain prime minister and acting party leader until Conservative Party lawmakers and members select a new leader after a process that is expected to last several weeks.

Nominations for the Conservative leadership close at 1600 GMT on Monday. </s> London [UK], Jun 7 (ANI): British Prime Minister Theresa May formally resigned as the head of the Conservative Party on Friday, setting off the campaign among eleven Members of Parliament to replace her, both as the party head and the country's PM.

However, May will remain the acting Prime Minister until a new leader is chosen, reports Sputnik.

In a tearful speech last month, 62-year-old May had announced that she would step down as the PM and party head, in consideration to the fact that she failed to pass her Brexit agreement in the Parliament despite repeated efforts and negotiations with the Labour Party.

At least eleven Conservative MPs are aiming to replace her, including the country's former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, and current Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, among others. The candidates are required to announce formal nominations next week, starting June 10.

May assumed the Prime Minister's office in July 2016 after her predecessor and party colleague David Cameron stepped down from the post, following the Brexit referendum, which saw 52 per cent of the electorate voting in favour of the country leaving the EU.

For long, May had been making efforts to push her beleaguered agreement or an alternative withdrawal deal through the British Parliament in a bid to prevent the UK from participating in the European Parliament elections. After the deal was rejected thrice in the UK parliament, May accepted her defeat and announced her resignation.

Last month, the EU leaders agreed to delay the Brexit process to another six months, with October 31 as the new date for the UK's withdrawal from the European bloc. (ANI) </s> LONDON – Theresa May has resigned as leader of the Conservative party, triggering a leadership contest which will see her replaced as prime minister in late July.

The 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs confirmed that the prime minister had handed in her notice on Friday afternoon.

The committee confirmed that May would remain as acting leader of the Conservative and Unionist party until her successor had been announced.

Conservative MPs who wish to replace her must submit their formal applications by Monday.

Eleven MPs have announced their intention to stand, including frontrunner Boris Johnson, as well as Dominic Raab, Michael Gove, and Andrea Leadsom. </s> Prime Minister Theresa May has officially resigned from her position as leader of the Conservative Party.

However she will remain as PM until a new Tory leader is elected.

The 62-year-old MP for Maidenhead announced her intention to stand down on May 24.

The race for the next party leader will begin on Monday with several MPs including Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Dominic Raab already putting their names forward for the role.

May was first elected as an MP in 1997 and was named party leader in 2016 after David Cameron stood down from the role following the EU referendum.

She decided to resign after repeatedly failing to her Brexit deal through parliament.

The next leader will have until October 31 to agree a deal that can gather enough support in Westminster or risk leaving the EU without a deal.

Download: The STV News app is Scotland's favourite and is available for iPhone from the App store and for Android from Google Play. Download it today and continue to enjoy STV News wherever you are. </s> LOUISVILLE, Ky (WDRB) -- Theresa May says she will step down as U.K. Conservative Party leader on June 7, sparking a contest to become Britain's next prime minister.

That internal election process will begin in the days immediately following her resignation on June 7.

She will stay as caretaker prime minister until the new leader is chosen, a process likely to take several weeks.

May has bowed to relentless pressure from her party to quit over her failure to take Britain out of the European Union on schedule.

Her departure will trigger a party leadership contest in which any Conservative lawmaker can run. The early front-runner is Boris Johnson, a former foreign secretary and strong champion of Brexit.

Britain is currently due to leave the EU on Oct. 31, but Parliament has yet to approve divorce terms. </s> Theresa May says she'll quit as UK Conservative leader on June 7, sparking contest for Britain's next prime minister

LONDON (AP) — Theresa May says she'll quit as UK Conservative leader on June 7, sparking contest for Britain's next prime minister. </s> Theresa May today announced her resignation as Prime Minister following her battle to push through a number of Brexit deals in the Houses of Parliament.

The embattled Prime Minister will stand down from her role on June 7.

North East Herts Conservative MP, Sir Oliver Heald, told this newspaper: "I am sorry that Theresa May has had such a difficult time as Prime Minister and hope she will continue to contribute to national politics.

"She has shown great resilience and I know many constituents admire her strength, as I do.

"She is a remarkable person. The next Prime Minister will face a big task in trying to resolve Brexit."

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South Cambridgeshire MP Heidi Allen - who left the Conservatives as a result of the party's policy on Brexit and is now the leader of Change UK - took to Twitter and said: "Oh Theresa May, why didn't we see that emotion more? Things could have been so different."

In her speech, Mrs May said: "I negotiated the terms of our exit and a new relationship with our closest neighbours that protects jobs, security and our union.

"I have done everything I can to convince MPs to back that deal, sadly I have not been able to do so, I tried three times.

"I believe it was right to persevere, even when the odds against success seemed high.

"But it is now clear to me that it is in the best interest of the country for a new Prime Minister to lead that effort, so I am today announcing that I will resign as leader of the Conservative and Unionist party on Friday, June 7, so that a successor can be chosen.

"I will shortly leave the job that has been the honour the honour of my life to hold. The second female Prime Minister, but certainly not the last.

"I do so with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love." </s> Theresa May has arrived at Buckingham Palace to seek permission from the Queen to form a new government. It comes just hours after it was revealed that the Prime Minister had lost her Commons majority in the General Election, which resulted in a hung parliament. Mrs May faces ending up with 12 fewer seats than when she called the election. She is seeking to stay in office on the understanding that the Democratic Unionists of Northern Ireland will support her minority administration.

Theresa May leaves Downing Street to meet the Queen

The DUP, who are the largest unionist political party in Northern Ireland, said their desire to form a coalition with Mrs May is driven by concerns about Jeremy Corbyn becoming Prime Minister. No party has an overall majority; the Conservatives remain the largest party with 318 seats so far while Labour currently have 261 - with 326 required for a majority and just one seat left to be called.

The Prime Minister was met by a sea of cameras as she left her official residence

STORY: Can the Queen vote in a General Election?

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, meanwhile, has called for the Prime Minister to resign following the election result. He told the BBC: "The Prime Minister called this election because she wanted a mandate. Well the mandate she's got is lost Conservative seats, lost votes, lost support and lost confidence. I would have thought that's enough to go, actually, and make way for a government that will be truly representative of all of the people of this country."

STORY: What is a hung parliament? And what happens next?

However, Mrs May has signalled that she intends to continue as Prime Minister, stating that the country needs "stability" with the start of the Brexit negotiations just ten days away. It's thought that her meeting with the Queen will last for around 40 minutes, after which she will make a statement outside Downing Street. </s> ANDREA Leadsom has sensationally resigned from her position in Theresa May's cabinet.

The leader of the House of Commons has tweeted to say she has quit her post in defiance at Theresa May's refusal to stand down. She wrote: "It is with great regret and a heavy heart that I have decided to resign from the Government." According to sources, Leadsom had been preparing to mount a leadership bid to become Prime Minister as soon as the PM announced her departure. But May managed to cling on tonight, refusing to meet a furious cabinet and saying she will even be out campaigning tomorrow.

Leadsom herself ran for the leadership of the Conservative Party in the wake of the referendum to leave the European Union that saw David Cameron resign as Prime Minister. But a gaffe-prone campaign saw her lose the race, with Theresa May eventually becoming PM. However, in a stinging resignation letter, the top Tory said she urged May to "make the right decisions in the interests of the country [and] this Government", adding: “I no longer believe that our approach will deliver on the referendum result”. She also said her decision to quit was over Brexit, stating that she no longer thinks the Government can deliver on the result of the referendum and blasting the PM's decision to offer a second vote.

It seems May's premiership is now all but over tonight as ministers line up to criticise her disastrous handling of Brexit. Explaining the timing of her resignation the night before the UK goes to the polls in the European elections, she said: "I considered carefully the timing of this decision, but I cannot fulfil my duty as Leader of the House tomorrow, to announce a Bill with new elements that I fundamentally oppose. "I fully respect the integrity, resolution and determination that you have shown during your time as Prime Minister." It now looks as though Theresa May could resign on Friday, with a meeting with the Conservatives' ruling 1922 Committee scheduled.

Sources inside Whitehall are now saying she has merely bought herself another 36 hours, but that her departure is still imminent. There is also speculation that she has delayed quitting until after the EU election so that she can take some of the blame if the Conservative Party does disastrously. It is believed she might do that to give the Tories some chance of bouncing back in the polls.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May resigns as Leader of the Conservative Party, paving the way for a new Prime Minister to be elected.