A Critical Time for the SNP: A New Leader and ‘First Activist’.

The three candidates - Humza Yousaf, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan - had feisty exchanges, serving to highlight weaknesses in the SNP government's performance. However, Yousaf had been endorsed by most SNP parliamentarians, and the cooperation agreement between the SNP and Scottish Greens would remain in place, suggesting some stability in government. This might suggest that other pro-indy parties (the Greens, Alba) can benefit from the SNP's problems, but the SNP remains the best vehicle for achieving independence, and unionist opponents sense an opportunity. At the beginning of 2023, the Scottish National Party was on the verge of a crisis. [Extracted from the article]