The United Kingdom has two main parties.
The Labour party sees itself as “for the many, not the few” and makes all the social justice, feminism, and DEI noises you’d expect. The Conservative party does no such thing, and sees DEI as incompatible with its values of meritocracy and freedom and equal opportunity. One party is led by a Black Nigerian woman, and the other never had a female leader.
In case this is news to you, it’s the Labour party who only elects white men, and it’s the Tory party with a track record of three female prime minsters and four female party leaders. And who did the current leader, 45 year old Kemi Badenoch, replace as leader of the conservative party? Rishi Sunak, the first British-Asian prime minster of the United Kingdom.
Conservatives take delight in this supposed irony, and the question arises: is the labour party a racist party? And a sexist one?
Well, all the evidence suggests that it is, and it’s not much of a secret. Those of us who lived through the horrifying Ken Livingston years know that antisemitism in the Labour party did not start with Jeremy Corbyn. And, if you’re vaguely familiar with Rosie Duffield, you already know Labour has a serious women problem.
That’s where most commentary seems to be; If only Labour got rid of the bad apples, and tried more quotas and more DEI, they can finally force the issue and end up with a woman leader. No matter how much they fail, their solution is always to try more of the same.
Back in the US, the Democrats are still asking why Kamala Harris lost so badly.
The former VP was polling at 0% in the 2020 primaries, was given the VP role for being the best black woman for the job (Biden said he’s not considering anyone white or male), and then chose her running mate on the basis of him not being too ambitious or Jewish. The Democratic party didn’t even bother voting for a candidate; Clooney and Obama decided when it was time for Biden to step down and hand it over to Kamala.
The Cherry on top was Kamala’s first interview as a presidential candidate; seeking to prove to the world she’s up for the challenge, she had Tim Walz by her side for moral support. Not very reassuring.
Who’s the sort of contra-Kamala figure then?
How about a woman who picked a fight with the forever-queen of the Democratic party and won? And shortly after that ended Kamala’s primaries run in 2020 in record time? I’m talking about Tulsi Gabbard, of course. The once democrat presidential candidate, now the Director of General Intelligence for the Trump administration.
Compare and contrast: Tulsi went toe to toe with Hillary Clinton and the establishment all on her own. Kamala couldn’t sit through a friendly CNN interview without a man by her side.
The knee-jerk reaction is to say she was never really a Democrat; a phoney, a sell out, an opportunist. Instead they should ask themselves why RFK Jr., Elon and Tulsi jumped ship. And what did conservatives see in Tulsi? The kind of “that’s the one democrat I’d vote for” and “I wish she was a conservative” chatter was doing the rounds in 2020.
Here’s what they see: a politician who gives a straight answer. One who actually knows her stuff. They see competence, and confidence, and real substance. To make my point direct – they don’t see a woman politician when they look at Tulsi. Gabbard is a politician who happens to be a woman.
How about the White House press secretary? in 2022, Karine Jean-Pierre began her role by announcing her skin colour and sexual orientation. In 2025, Karoline Leavitt announced that “America is back”. As “The View” derides Leavitt for being a pretty blonde, they fail to realise she’s exactly what the Democrats need. The White House now has a press secretary who believes her job is to answer questions, not duck them. Do Republicans know how lucky they are with Ms. McKineany 2.0? I doubt it.
Everything is upside down in our political culture. Anti-racists are preaching the most vile racism. Feminists are actively protesting in favour of rapists, and campaigning for less safe spaces for women. Former MSNBC hosts calling white people “mayonnaise white” and on a separate occasion “mayonnaise sandwich on wonder bread.”. LA Fire Chiefs blaming victims for being trapped in a burning building. And finally, it is conservative parties who are more conducive to producing strong female leaders.
If 2016 taught us anything, it’s to avoid making predictions. Certainly not in American politics. But here’s mine: the first female president of the United States will be a Republican. No, it’s not inconceivable for a Democrat to get there first. But if she does, it’ll be despite her party’s best efforts to keep that from happening.