Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has revealed the intense racial abuse she has faced since taking the helm of the party, saying some critics appear unable to accept her success.
Speaking candidly in an interview with The Sunday Times, Badenoch said the backlash since her historic election as the first Black woman to lead the Conservatives has taken her by surprise despite her long-standing belief that Britain is “the best place in the world to be black.”
“There’s a certain group of people who clearly can’t cope with the fact that I won this and I’m doing it,” she said. “The level of personal attacks from anonymous people it’s hysterical.”
Badenoch, who was born in Wimbledon and raised in Nigeria before returning to the UK at 16, said most of the hostility hasn’t come from fellow MPs, estimating that only “two to three” out of 120 Conservative MPs have issues with her leadership. However, she noted that online abuse is far more extreme.
“People used to talk about Trump derangement syndrome. I think there’s a Kemi derangement syndrome: ‘How could she possibly have done this?’”
She described a rise in online ethno-nationalist rhetoric, including insinuations that her success isn’t legitimate: “There’s a lot of stuff about my race and my ethnicity… the tropes around ‘she couldn’t possibly have done this all by herself.’”
Known for rarely discussing her heritage in depth, Badenoch has frequently challenged mainstream narratives around race. She has previously stated she no longer identifies as Nigerian and has been a vocal critic of anti-racism activism and critical race theory.
“I always try to think of every possible explanation before I go to race and racism,” she explained. “That is a healthy way to run a society.”
She recalled the backlash she received for once stating that Britain isn’t a racist country. “Ethnic minorities do very well here,” she said. “It is white working-class boys who are actually struggling on a lot of metrics.”
With her first party conference speech approaching and polling numbers at a low 17%, Badenoch now faces a crucial moment in her leadership. There are also rumours of internal pressure, with speculation that Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick may be positioning himself to take over.
Badenoch dismissed the idea of a leadership challenge as “wishful thinking,” attributing it to “sour grapes” and “sore losers.”
“When I hear those things, I can tell those people are not focused on the country at all,” she said. “Many of those people having those conversations think this is a game. But the lives of people in this country aren’t a game.”
