Humza Yousaf has been announced as the new SNP leader taking over from Nicola Sturgeon.
The Scottish government minister won narrowly as he secured 52.1% of votes from party members, beating rival Kate Forbes in a second round of voting.
He will officially become Scotland's First Minister tomorrow following a vote on the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood.
He will be the first British Asian and Muslim to hold the post.
Mr Yousaf said he was "honoured" to be entrusted by the SNP membership after winning the leadership election.
He said: "It is hard for me to find the words to describe just how honoured I am to be entrusted by our membership of the SNP to be the party's next leader and to be on the cusp of being our country's next first minister.
During the bruising contest, Mr Yousaf was challenged on his record as a government minister.
In one TV debate, Ms Forbes asked him: “When you were transport minister the trains were never on time, when you were justice minister, police were strained to breaking point.
"Now as health minister, we’ve got record high waiting times. What makes you think you can do a better job as First Minister?”
In a shock announcement last month Ms Sturgeon said she would resign from the role she has held more than eight years.
Here's a quick guide to her replacement and the Scottish National Party's new leader.
Who is Humza Yousaf?
Humza Yousaf was born on April 7 1985 in Glasgow.
After studying politics in Glasgow, he worked at an O2 call centre, before being hired as a parliamentary assistant for Bashir Ahmad, the first Muslim elected to the Scottish Parliament in 2007.
After Ms Ahmad’s death two years later, he worked as assistants for other MSPs including both Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond, another former First Minister of Scotland.
After being elected to parliament in 2011, at just 26 years old, Mr Yousaf went on to become the first South Asian and first Muslim cabinet secretary to serve in the Scottish Government.
He has been Scotland’s Health Secretary since 2021 and served as the Justice Secretary from 2018 to 2021.
What did he do before becoming leader?
Mr Yousaf has served as Health Secretary in Ms Sturgeon’s cabinet since May 2021 - meaning he was at its helm over a big chunk of the pandemic.
Along with other senior ministers, he was accused of being “missing in action” after taking a family holiday as Covid cases surged in Scotland.
He tweeted in defence: “Most important job I have is being a good father, step-father & husband to my wife & kids. In the last 7 months they've had virtually no time from me.”
The former Health Secretary has also overseen a major crisis in the NHS with record waiting lists and ambulance response times - which reached an average of six hours.
What were his standout moments in the leadership race?
Mr Yousaf was seen as the continuity candidate after Ms Sturgeon’s departure, as he was most aligned to her politics than his competitors.
The Deputy First Minister John Swinney and the SNP’s Westminster leader Stephen Flynn both supported Mr Yousaf in the race.
When he announced his leadership bid, he said he had been through a "rollercoaster of emotions" since Ms Sturgeon announced her resignation.
He declared: "You've got to put yourself forward if you think you're the best person for the job. And I do. This is the top job in the country, and it needs somebody who has experience."
Mr Yousaf emerged as the favoured candidate leadership rival Kate Forbes’s campaign was plagued by controversy after she said she wouldn't have voted for gay marriage and that she thought it was wrong to have children out of wedlock.
However as the row petered out the battle for top spot became harder to call in its final stages.
What are his key policies and promises?
Mr Yousaf has suggested setting up regional assemblies to discuss the way ahead on Scottish independence - the fundamental cause of the SNP.
It is a shift away from Ms Sturgeon’s tactic of using a Westminster general election as a “de facto referendum” on independence.
He has also supported defending the Gender Recognition Reform Bill after a section 35 order from the UK Government blocked legislation.
It has also been reported that he would pursue a huge rollout of free childcare if he won.
Any media attention or controversies?
In 2016, Mr Yousaf was fined £300 after being caught driving a friend's car without the proper insurance.
He said at the time: "This was an honest mistake, and an embarrassing one for me personally - however it underlines the importance of being properly insured at all times.”
Last month Mr Yousaf’s wife dropped legal action against a nursery the couple believed had discriminated against their daughter.
It followed a huge row after they accused the nursery of refusing their two-year-old daughter a place because she had a Muslim-sounding name.
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