British-born Nigerian politician Kemi Badenoch has made history after emerging as the leader of the Conservative Party in a tightly contested election.

Kemi, 44, beat fellow Conservative member Robert Jenrick to the top of the party’s hierarchy after recording 53,806 votes while he scored 41,388 votes.

Jenrick, in a social media post, congratulated the Nigerian and urged his followers to “unite behind Kemi and take the fight to this disastrous Labour government.”

Former party leader and UK’s former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also had words of praise for Badenoch and believes she has the capability of becoming “a superb leader of our great party.”

“She will renew our party, stand up for Conservative values, and take the fight to Labour,” Sunak said of his successor.

An excited Badenoch said it was “time to get down to business” after her victory in a month-long contest and vowed to return the party to its glory days.

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She also said the party whose membership has dropped from 172,000 in 2022 to under 132,000 in 2024 must rebuild by regaining the trust of the public.

Kemi Badenoch is tasked with the first “responsibility” of forming a strong opposition to the Labour Party, which took power after beating the Conservative Party in the 2024 election.

“Our party is critical to the success of our country,” Badenoch said during her victory speech.

Daughter to Yoruba Nigerian parents, Femi Adegoke, a general practitioner, and her mother, Feyi Adegoke, a professor of physiology, Kemi Badenoch was born on January 2, 1980, in Wimbledon, London, as Olukemi Adegoke. She was raised in Nigeria’s commercial capital, Lagos State, before returning to the United Kingdom at age 16.

Prior to her rise to the leadership of the Conservative Party, she worked in the Cabinets of former prime ministers Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. She also served as a representative for Saffron Walden (2017-2024) before becoming North West Essex’s Member of Parliament (MP) in 2024.