She was announced as the winner after a hard-fought race to replace Rishi Sunak, under whose leadership the Conservative Party was dethroned after 14 years in power. The 44-year-old defeated Robert Jenrick in the final round of voting, garnering 53,806 votes to Jenrick's 41,388.
Here are 10 things you need to know about the new leader of the Tories, now the opposition party in the UK.
1. Nigerian Descent
Kemi was born in January 1980 in Wimbledon, London, to Nigerian parents Femi and Feyi Adegoke. She spent much of her childhood in Nigeria and the United States before returning to the UK at the age of 16.
She is one of three children born to her Yoruba parents. Her father was a medical doctor, and her mother was a university lecturer. Kemi's father passed away in February 2022.
2. Software Engineer and Lawyer
Kemi studied Computer Systems Engineering at the University of Sussex, completing her MEng in 2003. She then worked as a software engineer at Logica from 2003 to 2006.
While at Logica, she studied law part-time at Birkbeck, University of London, and graduated in 2009.
Kemi also worked as a systems analyst at the Royal Bank of Scotland Group before pursuing a career in consultancy and financial services, serving as an associate director at Coutts & Co from 2006 to 2013 and later as a digital director at The Spectator from 2015 to 2016.
3. Joined the Conservative Party at Age 25
The 44-year-old politician first showed interest in politics at the tender age of 25 when she joined the Conservative Party in 2005. She later contested the 2010 general election for the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency against Labour's Tessa Jowell and finished third.
Not one to be discouraged, she tried again in 2012 and stood for the Conservatives in the London Assembly election, where she was placed fifth on the London-wide list. The election saw the Conservatives win three seats from the London-wide list, with Kemi narrowly missing out.
4. Elected to the London Assembly in 2015
Kemi assumed her London seat three years later during the 2015 general election, following the election of Victoria Borwick to the House of Commons, which prompted her to resign from the London Assembly. The fourth-placed candidate on the list, Suella Fernandes, was also elected as an MP, making Kemi the new Assembly Member. She retained her seat in the Assembly at the 2016 election.
5. Elected to Parliament in 2017
In 2017, Kemi was shortlisted as the Conservative Party's candidate for the marginal Hampstead and Kilburn constituency but was unsuccessful. However, she was selected as the Conservative candidate for Saffron Walden and won the election with 37,629 votes, achieving a majority of 24,966, representing 41.0% of the total.
6. Held Key Roles in Johnson, Truss, and Sunak Governments
In July 2019, she was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
In February 2020, she became Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Equalities.
In September 2021, Kemi was promoted to Minister of State for Equalities and appointed Minister of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government in a government reshuffle.
On July 6, 2022, she resigned from the government in a joint statement with fellow Ministers Alex Burghart, Neil O'Brien, Lee Rowley, and Julia Lopez, citing Boris Johnson's handling of the Chris Pincher scandal.
After Liz Truss became prime minister in September 2022, she appointed Kemi to her Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Trade. Following Truss's resignation the following month, Kemi endorsed Rishi Sunak in the leadership election, stating that he was "the serious, honest leader we need."
She later served in Sunak's administration as Secretary of State for International Trade and First Secretary of State at the newly created Department for Business and Trade.
7. Lost Bid to Succeed Johnson as Conservative Leader in 2022
Following Johnson's resignation, Kemi launched a bid to succeed him as Conservative Party leader, stating that she wanted to "tell the truth" and advocated for "strong but limited government." However, she was eliminated in the fourth round of voting and did not endorse another candidate.
In a recent interview with the BBC, Kemi revealed that the experience of Nigeria's economic and social upheavals shaped her political outlook.
'I grew up somewhere where the lights didn't come on, where we ran out of fuel frequently despite being an oil-producing country,' Kemi stated.
'I don't take what we have in this country for granted. I meet a lot of people who assume that things are good here because they always will be. They don't realize just how much work and sacrifice was required to get that.'
8. Gender-Critical Feminist
Kemi describes herself as a gender-critical feminist and has been an outspoken critic of moves to amend legislation to allow for self-certification of transgender identity.
As Minister of State for Equalities, Kemi opposed plans by the Financial Conduct Authority to allow trans employees to self-identify in the workplace, opposed gender-neutral toilets in public buildings, and has spoken in favour of retaining single-sex spaces such as toilets, professional sports, changing rooms, and domestic violence shelters for women.
9. Hacked a Labour MP's Website
In 2018, Kemi was involved in a controversy regarding the hacking of Labour MP Harriet Harman's website, where she admitted to altering its content to claim that the then-Deputy Leader was backing Boris Johnson in the race to become London mayor.
"This was a foolish prank over a decade ago, for which I apologise,' she told broadcaster Sophy Ridge in response to a question about the 'naughtiest' thing she had done.
Following her admission, she faced backlash. The incident was part of a broader narrative about her political past, but it did not appear to have a long-lasting negative impact on her career. She continued to rise through the ranks of the Conservative Party, ultimately becoming a Member of Parliament and serving in various ministerial roles.
10. Wife and Mother of Three
Kemi tied the knot with banker Hamish Badenoch in 2012. They have three childrenâ€"a son and two daughters.
Wycliffe Nyamasege
