Kemi Badenoch has won the race to become the next leader of the UK's Conservative Party. The 44-year-old North West Essex MP, who has been a staunch supporter of Israel and Benjamin Netanyahu’s war efforts in Gaza and in Lebanon, was declared the winner of a lengthy leadership after beating Robert Jenrick.
At a results ceremony in central London on Saturday it was confirmed that Badenoch had received 53,806 votes from members to Jenrick’s 41,388, leaving her the winner with 57% of the vote.
Having served as shadow business and trade and communities in the previous government Badenoch has been outspoken in her support for Israel.
Both she and Jenrick have repeatedly expressed support for the Conservative Friends of Israel organization, appearing at their hustings event last month, and both penning letters to the group.
Badenoch wrote: “If I am leader of the Conservative Party, we will continue to strengthen our ties with Israel and root out the tragic resurgence of antisemitism in the UK. We will be true to our values.” She added “We stand on the edge” of Labour “reversing” the UK’s strong relationship with Israel built by the previous Conservative government.
Last month she said Israel was showing “moral clarity in dealing with its enemies” in the war with Hamas and Hezbollah. In an interview with Sky News host Trevor Phillips, she said she would be “congratulating Prime Minister Netanyahu” in dealing with “enemies of the West.”
Asked if she was ready to give Israel a “free pass” if she became PM, Badenoch said: “It’s not about a free pass, Israel does have a right to defend itself… If we look at what happened on October 7 we can see they cannot be complacent,” she said adding "of course there will be red lines, we have international law for that.”
Badenoch also flew to Israel to engage in ongoing talks for a new free trade agreement with the Jewish state, which has yet to be concluded.
In terms of tackling antisemitism at home, Badenoch strongly disputed claims by Lord Mann, that she had no interest in discussing the problem with him when she was Communities Secretary.
Conservative former justice minister Lord Wolfson, a supporter of Badenoch’s, claimed: “That’s not my experience of her, nor that of many others.”
In comments about the pro-Palestine demos in the UK, Badenoch said: ”Our streets were soon filled with hordes of joyous people, not appalled at the acts of terror or demanding the perpetrators be brought to justice, but instead protesting against Jews under the guise of attacking Israel.”
Anti-Israel rally in London
After the final result was announced Badenoch said the Tory Party was “critical to the success of our country” but “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.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer responded to the result saying the first election of a black leader in the UK was “a proud moment for this country.”
Badenoch’s shared support from members was comparable to that achieved by former prime minister Liz Truss, but was less than that given to David Cameron, Boris Johnson and Iain Duncan Smith.
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