Kemi Badenoch has been elected the new leader of the UK’s Conservative Party, securing victory over Robert Jenrick in the final leadership vote.
Badenoch, who spent part of her childhood in Nigeria, becomes the first Black woman to lead a major political party in Britain.
She succeeds Rishi Sunak, under whose leadership the Conservatives suffered their worst-ever election defeat this past July.
Throughout her campaign, Badenoch pledged to steer the Conservatives back to “first principles” and committed to undertaking a series of policy reviews in the coming months to reshape the party’s platform.
Assuming the role as the party’s sixth leader in under nine years, she faces the immediate task of uniting a divided Conservative Party.
In her victory address, Badenoch emphasized the need to “tell the truth” and urged party members to “get down to business.”
She highlighted that her “first responsibility” as Conservative leader is “to hold this Labour government to account,” adding, “Our second is no less important – it is to prepare over the course of the next few years for government.”
Badenoch received 53,806 votes, defeating Jenrick, who garnered 41,388.
Attention now shifts to her selection for the shadow cabinet as she outlines the party’s direction.
Only a third of Conservative MPs supported Badenoch’s leadership bid.
In the lead-up to the final vote, Badenoch had indicated that she would consider offering positions to her leadership rivals, including Jenrick. However, shadow home secretary James Cleverly, who finished third, has already declined a frontbench role
