The Guardian speaks to five people who have got to know Badenoch in Whitehall, parliament and on social occasions
This weekend Kemi Badenoch became the first black person to lead a UK party and the fourth woman to lead the Conservatives. But behind those labels – which she hates being identified with – who is she?
Born in Nigeria, raised in Wimbledon and trained in computer systems engineering, Badenoch was elected as a Conservative MP in 2017. She was given her first ministerial role by Boris Johnson in 2019, and in 2022 was promoted to cabinet by Liz Truss as the international trade secretary.
