Boris Johnson drops out of race to be next UK prime ministerLONDON (AP) — Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Sunday he will not run to lead the Conservative Party, ending a short-lived, high-profile attempt to return to the prime minister’s job he was ousted from little more than three months ago.Johnson, who was ousted in July amid ethics scandals, had been widely expected to run to replace Liz Truss, who quit last week after her tax-cutting economic package caused turmoil in financial markets, was rapidly abandoned and and obliterated her authority inside the governing party.Johnson spent the weekend trying to gain support from fellow Conservative lawmakers after flying back from a Caribbean vacation and held talks with the two other contenders, Sunak and House of Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt.But he was far behind Sunak in support, and said he had concluded that “you can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in Parliament.”Asian shares mixed; Chinese economy grew 3.9% in July-SeptEXPLAINER: Why the British public is not choosing its leaderJohnson returns to UK amid rumors he will run for leaderInflation protests across Europe threaten political turmoilThe prospect of a return by Johnson had thrown the already divided Conservative Party into further turmoil.“What we can’t do is have him as prime minister in circumstances where he’s bound to implode, taking down the whole government ... and we just can’t do that again.”Truss quit Thursday after a turbulent 45 days, conceding that she could not deliver on her botched tax-cutting economic package, which she was forced to abandon after it sparked fury within her party and weeks of turmoil in financial markets."