Elizabeth Truss has trounced Rishi Sunak to become United Kingdom’s new prime minister replacing Boris Johnson. She is the third woman after Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May to lead the country.
She was one of the MPs who remained loyal to Boris Johnson till the end, arguing that he deserved more time to turn around his controversy-tarred three-year tenure.
Truss, 47, has described her ascent towards the top of British politics as a "journey" that has seen her criticised for being ambitiously opportunistic.
She comes from a left-wing family and initially joined the centrist Liberal Democrats before jumping ship to the right-wing Conservatives.
Since 2012 she has held a series of ministerial posts in the education, finance and departments as well as a difficult spell in justice.
In 2016, she campaigned for the UK to remain in the European Union but quickly became one of its strongest supporters when Britons voted for Brexit.
When the UK left the EU, Johnson put her in charge of negotiating new free trade deals before appointing her as foreign secretary last year.
Like Johnson, she has talked tough on Russia and given unswerving backing for Ukraine.
Truss has vowed tax cuts but those would do nothing to benefit the poorest as for weeks, the front-runner has been ruling out direct handouts.
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Truss's photo opportunities -- posing in a tank in Estonia and wearing a fur hat in Moscow -- have earned her comparisons to Tory icon Margaret Thatcher.