"This is a proud day for me and my family, and I hope it is also a proud day for Scotland as it speaks to our values as a country as I stand here as the first Muslim to lead a Western democratic nation," Yousaf said emotionally after the Parliament's vote. Tuesday, March 28.

The new prime minister is due to officially take office on Wednesday after being formally appointed to the post by royal warrant and being sworn in before the Court of Session, Scotland's Supreme Court.

At 37, he made history by becoming Scotland's youngest First Minister and one of the youngest sitting First Ministers in the world. He is also a Muslim, grandson of Pakistani immigrants who arrived in Scotland in the 60s. A first again in this position.

Following the surprise resignation of Nicola Sturgeon on 15th February last, after eight years in power, members of the Scottish Independence Party (SNP) had the choice between three candidates to succeed him.

With 52% of the vote of SNP members, Humza Yousaf, until then Minister of Health, won the second round of voting against Finance Minister Kate Forbes. "I am the luckiest man in the world," he said at the time, adding, perhaps to reassure, while he was elected by only some 51,000 members of the party, that he would be "the First Minister of all Scotland".

The embodiment of "continuity"

It is the culmination of a meteoric rise for Humza Yousaf, the child of Glasgow who has, throughout his career, openly denounced the racist acts and remarks of which he has been the victim.

Elected for the first time SNP member of the Scottish Parliament in 2011, he became, at only 26 years old, the youngest parliamentarian ever elected. The following year, he became the first Muslim and the first South Asian to be appointed to the Scottish government.

Close to Nicola Sturgeon, Humza Yousaf has since held several positions of responsibility, including as Minister of Justice and, more recently, Minister of Health. He has nevertheless been criticised for his record in government. But he was still the favourite of the party's ruling elite in the SNP leadership race. For, by promising to continue the "progressive" program of the party adopted under the leadership of the very popular Nicola Sturgeon, the latter embodied "continuity".

Officially, the outgoing Prime Minister did not support any particular candidate but she still said it was important not to "throw the baby out with the bathwater", a formula interpreted by her peers as a clear sign of support for Humza Yousaf.

Differences over gay marriage

If Humza Yousaf also won against Kate Forbes within the SNP, it is also partly thanks to the controversial positions of the Minister of Finance, a time favorite. His campaign has indeed benefited from several missteps by his main rival, some very conservative remarks have created controversy in this party anchored to the left.

The 32-year-old Highland mother and member of the Free Church of Scotland has opposed same-sex marriage and abortion.

During her campaign, she admitted that if she had been an MP in 2014, she would not have voted to legalize same-sex marriage, in keeping with her faith. An exit that cost him several supporters among SNP members and had negative echoes in the press. The former finance minister had also said that she personally opposed abortion and children out of wedlock, opinions that totally disagree with the majority of Scottish public opinion.

For his part, Humza Yousaf has continued to support marriage equality and assured that he would never legislate on the basis of his Muslim faith.

Kate Forbes then tried to repair the damage by saying that if she were elected Prime Minister, she "would not go back on already existing rights" and that she would "defend the right of everyone in a pluralistic and tolerant society to live and love without harassment or fear".

Justifications that seem to have been insufficient to repair the damage, analyzes Mark McGeoghegan, researcher at the University of Glasgow, specialist in independence movements.

NEW: Kate Forbes tells @Channel4News she would have voted against equal marriage.

But as First Minister she will not 'row back on rights that already exist.' pic.twitter.com/dspgxxSKpH

— Ciaran Jenkins (@C4Ciaran) February 20, 2023

According to Mark McGeoghegan, Kate Forbes had a good chance of becoming Prime Minister because she enjoyed a large number of supporters within the Scottish independence party. "There is clearly a large part of the SNP members who would like to reform the party, much more than what Humza Yousaf will do. If she (Kate Forbes) had been less divisive, she could have done better than him."

Arm wrestling with London

The differences of the two SNP champions on social issues do not end there.

Anchored to the left and very progressive on social issues, Humza Yousaf supports a law that wants to facilitate gender change for young people, from the age of 16 and without medical advice. A law that has been blocked by the British government. Humza Yousaf has pledged to take London to court to defend the legitimacy of the Scottish Parliament on the issue.

The other two candidates, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan, opposed the bill. Regan had resigned as minister in protest against this "gender reform" and the two competitors had declared that they would not challenge the British veto.

For researcher Mark McGeoghegan, Humza Yousaf's position on this law proved decisive. "During the debates, Humza Yousaf used this disagreement very effectively, to distance the nationalist Kate Forbes. The latter's explicit refusal to challenge (the veto of the British government) allowed Humza Yousaf to position himself as a savior by saying: 'I am the one who will defend the Scottish Parliament, it is I who will defend the interests of Scotland.'"

'My rights have been under attack for many years.'

SNP Leadership Candidate Humza Yousef says the government must fight for the rights of the most marginalised in society in a discussion about the Gender Recognition Bill.

Watch on Global Player | https://t.co/Q8LkG3U10f pic.twitter.com/57enTl9en5

— LBC (@LBC) March 20, 2023

The impasse of independence

Humza Yousaf also promised to be part of "the generation that will get independence", arguing that "the people" of Scotland "need independence now, more than ever". But the new First Minister comes to power at a time when the fight for Scottish independence, at the heart of the SNP's programme, seems to have stalled.

Today, polls show that support for Scottish independence is stagnating. According to a YouGov poll on 13 March, only 46% of respondents are in favour of independence, compared to 50% last month. Including the undecided, the proportion drops to 39%.

Humza Yousaf, however, pledged on Monday to launch a popular movement in favor of self-determination, even though the British Supreme Court ruled last year impossible to hold a new referendum without the agreement of London, which strongly opposes such a vote.

The new Prime Minister will have to reinvigorate the campaign for independence and "present a plan of attack to advance the independence project and succeed in convincing the members of the party to approve it," says Mark McGeoghegan. "It's not a question of who runs the country: Holyrood, the Scottish parliament, doesn't actually have the power to hold a referendum or declare Scottish independence. All the powers are in Westminster," continues the researcher for whom the only weapon the country has is "long-term political pressure".

Cost of living crisis

In front of the deputies, Humza Yousaf paid tribute Tuesday to Nicola Sturgeon, who had officially sent the same morning, his letter of resignation to Charles III.

"It will be difficult to replace," he said, promising to "continue to ensure that Scotland has a progressive voice on the world stage." Humza Yousaf takes positions anchored to the left on the economy, wishing for example to increase taxes on the richest in Scotland, which has 5.5 million inhabitants.

His task promises to be difficult, British newspapers said Tuesday. In the midst of the cost of living crisis, Humza Yousaf inherits a difficult mandate and will have to face major challenges: reducing inflation, the soaring cost of living and solving waiting problems in the health system.

The new head of the Scottish government will also have to overcome strong criticism of his record in power, particularly as health minister, as waiting times in hospitals have reached record levels under his tenure.

James Mitchell, professor of public policy at the University of Edinburgh, said: "He is in a very difficult position. The population does not trust him and does not consider him competent." For James Mitchell, the SNP will find itself "on the defensive, with a weak leader, who has not had much success as a minister." A recent Ipsos-Mori poll gives him only 22% of the opinion in favour of the Scottish population.

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