Ms. Badenoch, 44, whose parents were immigrants from Nigeria, becomes the first Black woman to head a party that has had three other female leaders — Margaret Thatcher, Theresa May and Liz Truss. She succeeds Rishi Sunak, who became the first nonwhite British prime minister after taking over the Tories, Britain’s oldest party, in 2022.

Kemi Badenoch was 16 years old when she arrived back in London from Nigeria. She was alone and only had £100 (ca. €120/$130) in her pocket. Her parents had sent her to the United Kingdom where she could forge a better life,