Humza Yousaf, in a tumultuous election race for leadership of the Scottish National Party pitted against socially conservative rivals Kate Forbes and Ash Regan, was elected Monday as SNP leader.
He becomes the first Muslim to lead a major U.K. political party and the first Muslim to lead a European democracy. In a vote in the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) on Tuesday, Yousaf was confirmed as Scotland’s next first minister, replacing Nicola Sturgeon.
Sturgeon had resigned as the SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister last month, setting off a close contest within the party to succeed her.
Her decision was tied to two key political challenges: The future of the independence campaign and changes to Scotland’s gender recognition laws.