Kemi Badenoch has won the Conservative leadership contest and has become the new leader of the opposition.
Keir Starmer called the election of the first Black leader of a Westminster party a “proud moment” for the country and congratulated her, but one Labour MP said her election “shows that the Tories only care about culture wars”.
Badenoch defeated her opponent Robert Jenrick in a vote of the Conservative Party’s membership with 56.5%.
Starmer said: “Congratulations, Kemi Badenoch, 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.”
But the Labour party posted on X:
Kemi Badenoch has been elected Tory leader.
The British public deserves to know her answers to these questions 👇 pic.twitter.com/H2uwOzBWXJ
— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) November 2, 2024
Would Kemi Badenoch take maternity rights away? pic.twitter.com/4lQOngnV3V
— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) November 2, 2024
A recent poll of LabourList readers found more thought Badenoch (35%) posed the greater threat to Labour than Jenrick (30%). But another 34% said they were unsure. Yet one Labour MP reposted another user’s post which read: “Loudest cheers coming from Labour HQ.”
The MP for North West Essex had been the favourite to replace Rishi Sunak as Tory leader since the start of the campaign back in September.
Badenoch had initially lagged behind Jenrick in a ballot of Conservative MPs, before taking the lead in the final round by a single vote.
First elected to Parliament in 2017, Badenoch served as International Trade Secretary under Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, as well as Business and Trade Secretary and women and equalities minister until the Labour landslide in the general election.
As Equalities Minister, Badenoch attacked trans people and failed to ban conversion therapy.
She’s called maternity pay excessive and her campaign leaflets argue that autistic people get “economic privileges”.
Her election shows that the Tories only care about culture wars.
— Nadia Whittome MP (@NadiaWhittomeMP) November 2, 2024
That is some achievement by @KemiBadenoch . To be the first black female leader of a major political party is quite something . I’m sure we’ll disagree on almost everything but hats off today. Hopefully a prelude to next week.
— Torcuil Crichton MP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (@Torcuil) November 2, 2024
As the leading dedicated Labour news and comment platform with readers across the party, LabourList hopes the reader poll may give some clues about Labour members’ views more broadly.
It should still be handled with some caution, however. LabourList is not suggesting this is a scientific, weighted poll that provides an exact representation of the views of all party members at large. While many members read our daily email, anyone can subscribe to it, and anyone can fill in the poll, member or not
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