Nigerian-born Kemi Adegoke Badenoch has been elected as the new leader of the UK’s Conservative Party.
Kemi, who grew up in Nigeria after her birth in the UK, became the first African woman to lead a major British political party.
Badenoch, 44, replaces former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak after a decisive leadership victory, pledging a return to the Conservative Party’s founding principles and a shift to the right following a severe defeat in July’s general election.
Road to Success
Badenoch campaigned on a platform of reducing the role of government and challenging what she calls “institutional left-wing thinking,” a stance resonant with her promise to defend free speech, free markets, and free enterprise.
After a months-long leadership race, she secured 57% of the party members’ votes in the final round, defeating former Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, who received 43%.
Kemi Badenoch’s philosophy
Badenoch has often stated that she prefers not to focus on her race, emphasising that skin colour should be no more significant than hair or eye colour.
This stance aligns with her broader views on identity politics, which she argues should not define political leadership.
‘Get down to business’
Vowing to tackle the challenges within her party head-on, Badenoch acknowledged the Conservatives’ struggles, particularly their resounding loss in July, which saw their seats in Parliament shrink from 365 in 2019 to just 121.
“The time has come to tell the truth,” she stated at the final leadership vote count, emphasising the need to rebuild and renew. “It is time to get down to business; it is time to renew.”
Despite her popularity within some Conservative factions, Badenoch’s appointment raises concerns among the party’s centrist members, who fear her positions may alienate moderate Conservatives and recent Liberal Democrat supporters.
Known for her outspoken approach and clashes with media, celebrities, and even her own officials, Badenoch has gained both passionate supporters and vocal detractors.
With Labour’s early challenges under Starmer, some Conservatives are cautiously optimistic about a possible comeback in the next election, due in 2029. However, Badenoch’s leadership will face a test as she attempts to unify her party and restore its electoral strength.
“Our first responsibility as His Majesty’s loyal opposition is to hold this Labour government to account.
“Our second is no less important: to prepare over the course of the next few years for government,” Badenoch told Conservative members, setting her sights on the long-term goal.
Multicultural Beginnings
Kemi Badenoch was born Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke on January 2, 1980, at a private Catholic maternity hospital in Wimbledon, London. Shortly after, her parents took her back to Nigeria, where she was raised.
She is one of three children of Nigerian Yoruba parents. Her father, Femi Adegoke, worked as a GP, and her mother, Feyi Adegoke, was a professor of physiology.
Badenoch spent her childhood between Lagos, Nigeria, and the United States, where her mother lectured. At age 16, she returned to the UK, settling in Morden, south London, to live with a family friend.
Although born a British citizen, she considers herself “to all intents and purposes a first-generation immigrant,” having grown up speaking Yoruba before learning English.
Badenoch credits her entry into politics to feeling “a very angry young person,” frustrated by career advisers and advocates who, she felt, dismissed African perspectives.
She supported herself during her A-level studies by working at McDonald’s and went on to work as a software engineer after university. Later, she transitioned into banking as an associate director at Coutts and then became a digital director at ‘The Spectator’ magazine.
Personal life
Kemi Badenoch is married to Hamish Badenoch and they have two daughters and a son.
Badenoch describes herself as an agnostic with cultural Christian values and notes that her maternal grandfather was a Methodist minister in Nigeria.
Badenoch’s father died in February 2022 and she took bereavement leave from her ministerial duties for a brief period
Key Political Milestones
In 2005, at age 25, Badenoch joined the Conservative Party, inspired by political figures like Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher. She was first elected to Parliament in 2017, representing Saffron Walden, and later North West Essex from 2024.
A firm supporter of Brexit, Badenoch gained attention with her strong pro-UK stance and served on the influential 1922 Committee.
Under Boris Johnson’s leadership in 2019, she entered government as junior minister for children and families and was later appointed Exchequer Secretary and Equalities Minister.
Known for defending the controversial Sewell report, which found the UK was not institutionally racist, she voiced skepticism toward identity politics, expressing concern over how her mixed-race children are perceived
Badenoch left the government in 2022 over Johnson’s leadership but returned under Liz Truss as Secretary of State for International Trade, and then under Rishi Sunak, who expanded her portfolio to include Business and Trade as well as Women and Equalities in 2023.
After the Conservatives’ defeat in the 2024 general election, she became Shadow Secretary for Housing and later won the party leadership, becoming Leader of the Opposition.
Reactions
Nigerians within and outside the country expressed happiness over Kemi Badenoch’s victory. Major media networks in Nigeria beamed developments in the Conservative Party election live.
Ex-prime minister Boris Johnson lauded Badenoch’s “courage and clarity” and said she “brings a much-needed zing and zap to the Conservative Party.”
Congratulations to Kemi on her outstanding victory
She brings a much needed zing and zap to the Conservative Party
This sleaze-ridden Labour government has no ideas or agenda beyond the old tax and spend socialism
They are far more vulnerable than the parliamentary maths…
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) November 2, 2024
In his reaction, Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer welcomed Badenoch’s win, calling her role as the first Black leader of a Westminster party “a proud moment for our country.
He added: “I look forward to working with you and your party in the interests of the British people.”
Congratulations, @KemiBadenoch, on becoming the Conservative Party’s new leader.
The first Black leader of a Westminster party is a proud moment for our country.
I look forward to working with you and your party in the interests of the British people.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) November 2, 2024
But Labour Party chair Ellie Reeves said the Conservative leadership campaign showed the party had “learned nothing since the British people resoundingly rejected them in July.”
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey also congratulated Badenoch, saying, “the first Black leader of a major UK political party is a historic moment for the country.”
Nigerians’ successes in the UK
Anthony Joshua, a boxer, actor John Boyega, Pearlena Igbokwe, Chibundu Onuzo, a novelist, among others, have made the country proud in the United Kingdom.
In all fields of human endeavours, Nigerians are top-notch and great achievers. These remarkable feats speak to the resilience of an average Nigerian at home and abroad.
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