13 seek to replace outgoing British PM Theresa May

June 3 (UPI) -- As British Prime Minister Theresa May prepares to step down Friday, 13 candidates have lined up to replace her and take on Brexit.

The disastrous Brexit campaign forced May to resign as the country's Parliament failed to reach agreement on how to leave the European Union.

Former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is among the candidates campaigning for the prime minister position.

"If I get in, we'll come out -- deal or no deal on Oct. 31," Johnson said in a campaign video. "If there is one lesson in that referendum of 2016, it is that too many people feel left behind. They're not able to take part fully in the opportunities and success of our country."

The "One Nation" conservative caucus will have several meetings this week to sound out the candidates. They will also be interviewed by Spectator journalist Katy Balls and political comedian Matt Forde.

Conservative candidate Ether McVey echoed Johnson's statements, saying Britain must leave the EU by Oct. 31.

"I'm sure people will try and frustrate the will of the British people," she told the BBC. "But the prime minister has the ability to ensure things don't happen to frustrate things on the floor of the House."

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt also said he would push for a no-deal Brexit as a last resort if he's elected prime minister.

"My position on this hasn't changed at all," Hunt said. "I've always said that in the end, if the only way to leave the European Union, to deliver on the result of the referendum, was to leave without a deal, then I would do that. But I would do so very much as a last resort, with a heavy heart, because of the risks to businesses and the risks to the union."