LONDON – Britain’s opposition Conservative Party appointed right-wing Kemi Badenoch as its new leader on Saturday, capping a lengthy second round after the Tories’ crushing electoral defeat heralded a moment of reckoning for the party.

Badenoch ousted Robert Jenrick to secure the top job, replacing outgoing leader and former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

“It is the greatest honor to be chosen for this role,” said Badenoch, who made her first speech as party leader shortly after the results were announced.

The decision follows a three-month competition in which an initial shortlist of six candidates was whittled down to two through four rounds of voting by Tory MPs.

The eventual winner was decided by Conservative Party members, with Badenoch receiving 53,806 votes, compared to 41,388 for Jenrick. Voter turnout in the elections was 72.8%.

Badenoch’s victory confirms a further shift to the right for Britain’s oldest political party, suggesting it may take a tougher approach to immigration, climate action and cultural politics in opposition.

Badenoch and fellow right-wing candidate Jenrick were seen as unlikely opponents in the final vote, with some MPs suggesting that tactical voting designed to hurt their least favorite figure had instead backfired on former front-runner and more centrist contender James Cleverly.

The Conservatives suffered an embarrassing defeat in the British general election on July 4, when Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labor government won a landslide victory as voters grew tired of the constant leadership changes and political infighting at the end of the 1940s. years of Tory rule.

Badenoch said the Conservatives needed to acknowledge their past mistakes and change course.

“Our party is crucial to the success of our country. But to be heard, we must be honest. Honest about the fact that we made mistakes, honest about the fact that we relaxed the standards,” she emphasized on Saturday.

“The time has come to tell the truth, to stand up for our principles, to plan for our future. To reset our politics and our thinking, and to give our party and our country the fresh start they deserve. It’s time to get started. It is time to innovate,” Badenoch added.

British-born Badenoch grew up in Nigeria and worked in IT and banking before entering the British political sphere, where she was elected MP in 2017. She has held ministerial positions under three prime ministers, including Minister of Business.

A staunch supporter of Brexit, 44-year-old Badenoch is known for her outspoken views and tough stance on divisive issues such as immigration and transgender rights, including in her role as Minister for Women and Equality.

During the leadership race – her second in two years, after finishing fourth in the 2022 runoff – Badenoch pledged to reset the Conservative Party, arguing it had become too similar to Labor and proposing softer state intervention and a greater focus for families.

However, her strong political views have caused controversy over the years, with recent comments about maternity benefits having “gone too far” sparking a backlash, while her suggestion that “not all cultures are equally valid” has damaged her image as a so-called culture. warrior.

Badenoch’s opponent Jenrick was once a close ally of Sunak, who started his political career as a centrist figure. He has since aligned himself with the right within the party, making regaining control of Britain’s borders a central tenet of his leadership presentation.

The 42-year-old former lawyer resigned as immigration minister in December 2023, insisting Sunak’s Rwanda legislation did not go far enough. He further pledged to withdraw Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights to encourage deportations and has taken increasingly hardline – and sometimes controversial – positions.

The leadership victory is unlikely to have any immediate impact on the current government, as Labor has the second largest parliamentary majority in history.

It is also possible that the new leader of the Tories will no longer be in power by the time Britain votes for its next government in up to five years.

Sunak said Badenoch would be an “excellent leader” and urged his party to rally behind her.

“She will renew our party, stand up for conservative values ​​and take the fight to Labour,” he wrote in a social media post.

A revived opposition party will be better placed to put pressure on Starmer – who described the election of the first black leader of a Westminster party as a “proud moment” for the country – and criticize some of his key policies.

“Our first responsibility as His Majesty’s loyal Government is to hold this Labor Government to account. Our second is no less important: it is to prepare for a government over the coming years,” Badenoch said on Saturday.

The return of Brexiteer Nigel Farage to the political fray in June, along with surprise electoral gains for his Reform UK Party, could see the Conservatives move further to the right to prevent further electoral losses.

Some analysts have suggested that the newly reformed Tory party could even work with Reform’s Farage to boost support – a suggestion to which Farage has said: ‘Never say never’.