A former Tory peer who called out her own party for being Islamophobic has in a shock move given her backing to Kemi Badenoch, saying she “hopes and prays” that the candidate will bring sanity to the Conservatives.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Sayeeda Warsi, who has recently published her book Muslims Don’t Matter, said she might regret voting for Ms Badenoch but sees her as the least bad option.
She said: “I know I am probably going to regret doing this but I also know the alternative is far far worse. Taking a chance on Kemi.
“Hoping and praying she can find a way back to sane, non culture war, grown up, serious and trusted politics once this leadership battle is over.”
The comment seems to be more of an indictment of Ms Badenoch’s rival in the final two, Robert Jenrick, who has been campaigning on an openly right-wing ticket to withdraw Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights and has taken a strongly pro-Israel, anti-Hamas stance on the war in Gaza. Baroness Warsi has previously been enraged by Mr Jenrick wearing a shirt bearing the words “Hamas are terrorists”.
Baroness Warsi recently quit the parliamentary party when an investigation was launched into her language, but still gets a vote as an ordinary party member.
The peer, who was made party chair by David Cameron in the coalition government, has previously accused the Tories of Islamophobia, but was investigated for describing Rishi Sunak as a “coconut” – a derogatory term meaning a person of colour who is perceived to have betrayed their racial origins. The term has been applied to Ms Badenoch as well, following her criticism of identity politics.
But Baroness Warsi’s support for Ms Badenoch has not been publicly welcomed by the former business and trade secretary’s team. A source close to the leadership candidate simply replied with an emoji showing gritted teeth.
In a sign of the current state of the Tory party, an ally of her rival Mr Jenrick messaged: “Well that’s a massive boost for the Jenrick camp.”