World News | Humza Yousaf Elected as Scottish National Party's New Leader

London, Mar 27 (AP) Scotland's governing Scottish National Party elected Humza Yousaf as its new leader on Monday after a bruising five-week contest that exposed deep fractures within the pro-independence movement.

The 37-year-old son of South Asian immigrants is set to become the first person of colour to serve as Scotland's first minister.

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Yousaf, who currently is Scotland's health minister, beat two other Scottish lawmakers in a contest to replace First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. She unexpectedly stepped down last month after eight years as leader of the party and of Scotland's semi-autonomous government.

Yousaf, who is due to be confirmed as first minister by Scottish lawmakers on Tuesday, faces the challenge of uniting the SNP and reenergising its campaign for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom.

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“Just as I will lead the SNP in the interests of all party members, not just those who voted for me, so I will lead Scotland in the interests of all our citizens whatever your political allegiance," he said in an acceptance speech at Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium.

The SNP's 72,000 members narrowly chose Yousaf over Scottish Finance Secretary Kate Forbes, with lawmaker Ash Regan a distant third.

A formidable leader who led the SNP to a dominant position in Scottish politics, Sturgeon failed in her aim of leading Scotland out of the United Kingdom, and divided the party with a contentious transgender rights law.

The three candidates to succeed her share the goal of independence, but differ in their economic and social visions for Scotland.

Yousaf, 37, is widely seen as a “continuity Sturgeon” candidate who shares the outgoing leader's liberal social views.

Forbes, 32, is an evangelical Christian who has been criticised for saying that her faith would have prevented her from voting in favour of allowing same-sex couples to wed, had she been a lawmaker when Scotland legalised gay marriage in 2014.

Both Forbes and 49-year-old Regan opposed oppose legislation championed by Sturgeon to make it easier for people in Scotland to legally change their gender.

The gender recognition bill has been hailed as a landmark piece of legislation by transgender rights activists, but faced opposition from some SNP members who said it ignored the need to protect single-sex spaces for women, such as domestic violence shelters and rape crisis centres.

Yousaf has promised to push forward with the legislation, which has been passed by the Scottish parliament but blocked by the UK government.

The SNP holds 64 of the 129 seats in the Scottish parliament and governs in coalition with the much smaller Greens. The smaller party had warned it might quit the coalition if the SNP elected a leader that doesn't share its progressive views — meaning a victory by Forbes or Regan could have splintered the government.

Yousaf faces the challenge of leading the independence movement out of an impasse.

Scottish voters backed remaining in the UK in a 2014 referendum that was billed as a once-in-a-generation decision. The SNP wants a new vote, but the central government in London has refused to authorise one, and the UK Supreme Court has ruled that Scotland can't hold one without London's consent.

Yousaf has signalled he will act cautiously. He says he wants to build a “settled, sustained” majority for independence. Polls currently suggest Scottish voters are split about evenly on the issue.

The bruising leadership contest has sent the SNP's poll ratings plunging — to the delight of the Labour Party and the Conservatives, which hope to gain seats in Scotland during the next UK-wide election, due by the end of 2024. (AP)

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