“Anti-woke” candidate Kemi Badenoch won the vote on Saturday to become the new leader of the British Conservatives, replacing Rishi Sunak who resigned after the party’s disastrous performance in July’s general election.

Badenoch, 44, came top in the two-way race with former Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, winning 57 per cent of the party members’ vote.

She said becoming party leader was a “huge honour”, but “the task ahead of us is difficult”.

“We need to be honest that we made mistakes” and “let standards slip,” she said.

“It’s time to get to work, it’s time to renew,” she added.

The combative former equalities minister now faces the daunting task of reuniting a divided and weakened party that was categorically ousted from power in July after 14 years in power.

Badenoch will become the official leader of the opposition and will face Labor’s Keir Starmer in the House of Commons every Wednesday for traditional Prime Minister’s Questions.