LONDON — Kemi Badenoch has made history as the first Black woman to lead a significant political party in the United Kingdom, taking the helm of the Conservative Party. Known for her optimistic and direct manner, Badenoch identifies herself as a libertarian who believes the British government is in disrepair and that she possesses the vision to restore it through reduced governmental intervention and bold innovative approaches.
Born Olukemi Adegoke in London in 1980 to affluent Nigerian parents — a physician and an educator — she spent a considerable part of her early years in Nigeria. Badenoch has indicated that her upbringing amidst Nigeria’s economic and societal challenges profoundly influenced her political perspective.
Reflecting on her past experiences, she remarked, “I grew up in an environment where we faced frequent power outages, and despite being an oil-producing nation, fuel shortages were a common occurrence,” during a BBC interview last week. She emphasized, “I never take for granted what we have in this country.” Moreover, she expressed concern about the complacency of some who assume the country’s current stability will persist without recognizing the hard work and sacrifices that brought it to this point.
Returning to the U.K. at age 16 during a turbulent phase in Nigeria, she balanced part-time work at McDonald’s while completing her education before pursuing computer systems engineering at the University of Sussex. She further obtained a law degree and carved out a career in the financial sector.
In 2012, Badenoch married banker Hamish Badenoch, and together they have three children. She entered politics by being elected to the London Assembly in 2015, followed by her election to Parliament in 2017. During Boris Johnson’s administration from 2019 to 2022, she gained various government roles, eventually participating in a mass resignation wave in July 2022 that led to Johnson’s exit amid ethical controversies.
Although her attempt to succeed Johnson ended in failure, it did enhance her visibility within the party. She served as trade secretary under the brief government of Liz Truss and later became business secretary towards the end of Rishi Sunak’s term. Badenoch retained her parliamentary seat in a national election where the Labour Party secured a significant majority, leaving the Conservatives with only 121 members in the 650-seat House of Commons.
Badenoch, like many within the Conservative ranks, holds Margaret Thatcher in high regard. As the party’s first female leader, Thatcher reshaped Britain with her pro-market reforms in the 1980s. Badenoch, leveraging her engineering background to portray herself as a problem-solver, is advocating for a lower-tax environment and a market-driven economy. She has pledged to “rewire, reboot, and reprogram” the state of Britain.
As a critic of multiculturalism and a vocal opponent of “identity politics,” she has also expressed resistance to gender-neutral bathrooms and governmental efforts to lower the country’s carbon footprint. Her supporters believe her dynamic and candid demeanor is precisely what the Conservative Party requires to rebound from its largest electoral setback in history. During her campaign for leadership, her advocates were seen in T-shirts that declared, “Be more Kemi.”
However, opponents argue that Badenoch’s confrontational approach has led to conflicts with colleagues and civil servants, alongside a propensity for making hasty remarks that spark unnecessary heated exchanges. During her leadership bid, she faced backlash for asserting that “not all cultures are equally valid” and implying that maternity pay was too generous, though she later walked back that statement.
“I do express my thoughts freely,” she affirmed in her BBC interview. “And I strive to speak the truth.”