Boris Johnson delivers surprise final UK election rally

LONDON: Former prime minister Boris Johnson sprung a surprise on the British election campaign on Tuesday, making one last bid to drum up support for the Conservatives and their leader Rishi Sunak, the man who helped oust him.

Johnson won a large majority in the last election in 2019 before being forced to stand down in 2022 by a Conservative rebellion that Sunak helped launch that exposed deep divisions in the ruling party, notably between Sunak and Johnson.

Greeted by chants of “Boris!” from party supporters two days before an election the Conservatives are expected to lose heavily, he introduced the current prime minister at a campaign event in London.

In a speech that listed many of his own achievements, Johnson gave little personal support to Sunak, but focused on the dangers he said of the opposition Labor Party taking power.

“None of us can be left behind as a Labor government prepares to use a sledgehammer to destroy so much of what we have achieved,” he said.

Acknowledging that some may be surprised to see him, he said he was happy to be asked to help Sunak. “Of course I couldn’t say no,” he added.

“Whatever our differences are they are completely insignificant compared to the devastation we may face if these so-called polls are correct,” Johnson said.

Johnson, one of the most recognizable figures in British politics and a proven winner of the election, spent almost the entire campaign on the sidelines, having left the political front line in 2023. He has endorsed individual candidates in video messages, but has not previously appeared in big pre-election events.

Sunak, who appeared after – but not alongside – Johnson on stage, thanked his predecessor.

“Isn’t it great to have our conservative family together, my friends?” he said.