LONDON—Theresa May entered No. 10 Downing St., on Wednesday as Britain’s new prime minister, following a bittersweet exit by David Cameron that was tinged with humor and regret.
“I was the future once,” Cameron quipped as he left office. But that future now belongs to May, and it involves instability, uncertainty and tough wrangling over Britain’s departure from the European Union.
Britain’s transition of power unfolded with startling speed since the June 23 referendum on EU membership. Cameron announced his resignation after voters rejected his appeal to stay in the 28-nation bloc, and May, the former home secretary, became Conservative Party leader Monday after an abbreviated contest in which her only remaining rival dropped out.
Then came Wednesday’s ceremonial choreography: Two trips to Buckingham Palace and two audiences with Queen Elizabeth II that ended with one prime minister out of a job and a new one curtseying to the monarch to begin her term.
May stood in front of the iconic door of No. 10 with her husband, Philip, as the 13th prime minister of the queen’s reign and the first woman to hold the job since fellow Conservative Margaret Thatcher served from 1979 to 1990.
