Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown was a Labour politician, member of the Parliament, and prime minister of the United Kingdom.
Contents
History
Brown earned a Ph.D. in history from the University of Edinburgh in 1982. While working towards that degree, in 1979, he ran unsuccessfully as a Labour candidate for a seat in the Parliament. He also campaigned for Yes in the 1979 devolution referendum.
He then ran successfully in the June 1983 general elections. He rose rapidly in the party, becoming shadow chancellor in 1992. He signed the Scottish Claim of Right and participated in the Scottish Constitutional Convention.
Labour won the May 1997 general elections, and Brown quickly was confirmed as Blair's chancellor. He was also the favorite to succeed Blair, who had announced as early as October 2004 that he was planning to step down as party leader. This resignation finally occurred in June 2007, when Brown had secured enough nominations to bypass an actual leadership contest.
Brown led Labour into a long series of electoral defeats: the May 2008 local elections, several subsequent by-elections, the June 2009 MEP elections, and finally the May 2010 snap elections. Although no party had secured a majority, the Conservatives and Lib-Dems quickly agreed to a coalition under Cameron. Brown resigned and returned to the backbenches, where he remained until he chose not to contest the May 2015 general elections.