Kemi Badenoch Combative culture warrior unafraid to come out swinging
Age 44
Biography Born Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke in Wimbledon, south London, in 1980 after her mother flew to London for maternity treatment, but grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, where her father was a doctor and her mother an academic.
• Moved at 16 to London to take her A-levels while staying with family friends and working at McDonald's, where "I became working class". Studied computing at the University of Sussex where "stupid lefty white kids" made her "more Conservative".
• Worked in finance and as digital director of the Spectator, from which she resigned rather than take maternity leave.
• London assembly member from 2015; elected MP for Saffron Walden in 2017. Served as trade secretary and minister for women and equalities, and had other junior ministerial roles under Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. Long seen as a protege of Michael Gove, though the relationship "is not what it used to be".
• Has three children with her husband, the banker Hamish Badenoch.
This story is from the November 02, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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This story is from the November 02, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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