Boris Johnson’s future murky after Monday’s no-confidence vote

• Boris Johnson won a no-confidence vote in his premiership. How long can he stay in power?
• The move to oust Britain’s leader came from lawmaker furious over so-called partygate revelations.
• Johnson has long courted celebratory, maverick status and played to the gallery.

LONDON – In 2012, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was left dangling on a zip wire when it stopped working during the Summer Olympics in London.

It offers an apt analogy for Johnson’s current political predicament. He has long been able to defy the laws of political gravity, a clown-king who routinely disguises perceived moral failings and outright falsehoods in soaring Churchill-esque speeches laced with elaborate Latin flourishes.