Obama loses reliable partner, faces uncertainty after Brexit

WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first 7½ years of his presidency, Barack Obama could rely on the United Kingdom to back him up at nearly every turn, knowing British leaders had both the global clout and shared perspective to be powerful U.S. partners.

In his public reaction to the vote, Obama offered assurances that the two countries would remain "indispensable partners" and that the special relationship forged by their common history would survive intact.

Though British voters haven't picked a replacement, an early favorite is former London Mayor Boris Johnson, a forceful voice for leaving the EU who once suggested that Obama had an "ancestral dislike of the British Empire" due to his Kenyan roots.

American voters in November will likely be choosing between Democrat Hillary Clinton, who largely embraces Obama's worldview, and Republican Donald Trump, who cheered Britain's decision and predicted other European countries would follow suite.

Obama has said Cameron's failure to persuade Parliament to approve airstrikes against Syria's government was a wake-up call that heavily influenced his decision to call off his own planned strikes in 2013.