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The new leader of the Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has expressed her confidence that she can win the next general election. In order to do so, she must first make a series of senior appointments. There are only 121 Conservative MPs, and almost as many shadow ministerial roles to fill. Some junior shadow ministers may be asked to shadow more than one brief, but that would involve asking them to take on additional work. Furthermore, some MPs, including Rishi Sunak, Sir Oliver Dowden, Jeremy Hunt, and James Cleverly have already expressed their desire to be backbenchers.
When leaders of opposition parties make appointments, they offer the democratically important but less appealing role of shadow minister, rather than real power. Kemi Badenoch must also contend with her authority over her parliamentary party. She was only the first choice for leader for 35% of Conservative MPs and 57% of party members who voted in the leadership race. While a win is a win, neither endorsement was emphatic.
Robert Jenrick, who came in second place, was offered a variety of jobs, including shadow health secretary, shadow housing secretary, shadow work and pensions secretary, and shadow justice secretary. He was not offered shadow foreign secretary. It is unclear which job he will accept. Half an hour after he was offered the roles, those around Jenrick stated that he had accepted becoming shadow justice secretary.
Perhaps the most critical appointment Badenoch must make is shadow chancellor. Mel Stride, a former cabinet minister, is favored for the role, given his experience in Treasury. However, perhaps the appointment that has caused the most consternation is shadow foreign secretary. Dame Priti Patel has been appointed to that role, despite finding herself out of government in 2017 after she was discovered running a freelance foreign policy operation while on holiday in Israel. Some within the Conservative Party have criticized Badenoch for her decision to appoint Patel, claiming that she has “destroyed within 48 hours any chance she had of having a respectable foreign policy.”
Despite these challenges, Badenoch remains confident and is focused on building a team that can help the Conservative Party regain power
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