This article appears as part of the Unspun: Scottish Politics newsletter.
With Humza Yousaf's announcement today that he will step down as an MSP at the next Holyrood election in 2026, the pressure will be on his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon to say what she intends to do.
Both Mr Yousaf and Ms Sturgeon submitted forms for vetting to the SNP this autumn while they considered whether or not to stand again - with the latter having to declare to senior party officials that she was under police investigation to keep open the prospect of re-election, according to reports last month.
Now Mr Yousaf has decided he won't be standing again, what about Ms Sturgeon?
She remains formally under investigation by detectives examining the SNP’s finances as part of Operation Branchform.
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Her husband Peter Murrell, the SNP’s former chief executive, was charged this year in connection with the embezzlement of party funds.
Friends of Ms Sturgeon have previously said they do not expect her to put herself forward for another term in the Scottish Parliament, while critics are much opposed to the idea.
“Anyone who has been under investigation for a serious crime, whose husband has been charged with embezzling our own members’ funds, shouldn’t even be considered for standing," one SNP source told The Times last month.
“Anyone who has been under investigation for a serious crime, whose husband has been charged with embezzling our own members’ funds, shouldn’t even be considered for standing.”
While still with considerable personal support among the SNP's grassroots, Ms Sturgeon's continued presence as an MSP has been highly awkward for the party.
The controversies over her time in office - including the bitter rupture from her former mentor and predecessor as SNP leader and First Minister, the late Alex Salmond - still cast a long shadow over a party keen to heal divisions.
Her socially progressive agenda, in particular around gender identity issues, while helping attract many young left leaning Scots to the SNP and seal a deal with the Scottish Greens, caused internal warfare in her party - just now beginning to subside.
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Some in the party too feel the Bute House Agreement struck with the Greens back in August 2021 paved the way for an agenda which failed to take sufficient account of the role of business in growing the economy and generating revenue for public services.
And of course, with the image of a police forensic tent outside her home in April last year, Ms Sturgeon will for a long time be associated with Operation Branchform, the Police Scotland investigation into SNP finances, in the minds of voters.
Even Mr Yousaf - Ms Sturgeon's favoured politician to succeed her - laid some blame at his predecessor's door for the SNP's devastating general election result in July.
It is not clear when Ms Sturgeon will set out what her intentions are for the 2026 election but with the selection of candidates for each seat to formally start on February 3, she will have to reveal her intention within the next few weeks.
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