(Photo : Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
The election of Humza Yousaf as Scotland's new first minister was hailed a "historic moment" as he became the first non-White leader of the Scottish government.
- Humza Yousaf marks a "historic moment" by being elected as Scotland's new first minister
- The official first took his oath of allegiance in the Scottish parliament in 2016
- The current Scottish health secretary is committed to pursuing independence for Scotland
Humza Yousaf becomes Scotland's new first minister, marking a "historic moment" by becoming the first non-White head of the Scottish government.
In 2016, Yousaf took his oath of allegiance in the Scottish parliament, where he wore a gold embroidered sherwani, which was a traditional South Asian jacket, as well as a kilt. At the time, he swore to be honest and have a true heart. Speaking in Urdu, he committed to being faithful and bearing allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.
Scotland's New First Minister
Now, the official is set to make history by leading the Scottish government, as he was elected on Monday to be the Scottish National Party (SNP) leader. Despite being born in Britain, Yousaf's family can be traced back to their ancestry in Pakistan.
Yousaf's latest election victory marks the latest reflection of how times have changed throughout history as people of South Asian descent continue to occupy leadership positions in the British, Scottish, and Irish parliaments, as per CNN.
The 37-year-old lawmaker joins British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is a Hindu and was able to be elected last October. The latter's Indian parents traveled from East Africa in the 1960s to the United Kingdom.
In comparison, across the Irish Sea, the Republic of Ireland's Prime Minister Leo Varadkar's father was a doctor born in India. Previously, India and Pakistan were considered the jewel of the British empire. Due to how far stretched the latter was, many people have said that the sun would never set on it.
But 75 years after the end of the British Raj, many commentators have expressed their thoughts on how history has come full circle. The think tank British Futur directore, Sunder Katwala, called Yousaf "the history maker" in a Twitter post.
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Humza Yousaf's Election Win Marks 'Historical Moment'
Yousaf will be formally sworn into his new position during a ceremony scheduled for Wednesday. He secured the nominations of a majority of lawmakers on Tuesday by continuously committing to pursuing the independence of Scotland, according to the Hindustan Times.
The newly elected Scottish first minister's education was at the Hutchesons' Grammar School in Glasgow, Scotland. He also attended the University of Glasgow, earning a degree in politics.
In February, Yousaf talked about his late grandfather, who came to Scotland by traveling from a small town in Pakistan in 1962. He added that he did not believe that his grandfather would ever have expected his grandson to one day be the leader of Scotland's government.
Yousaf is set to succeed Nicola Sturgeon for the position after he defeated rivals, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan. Currently, the lawmaker is Scotland's health secretary and was widely viewed to succeed Sturgeon. However, she did not explicitly express her support of any candidates in the contest, said BBC.
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