Nigerian-British politician Chi Onwurah has been re-elected to the British Parliament after Thursday’s general election in the United Kingdom.
Chinyelu Susan Onwurah, representing the Labour Party, was first elected to the British House of Commons in 2010 for the Newcastle upon Tyne Central constituency. In the 2024 election, held on Thursday, she secured her position once again, this time representing Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West.
As the Co-Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Africa (APPG for Africa) and a member of the Royal African Society, Onwurah expressed gratitude to her constituents and the Labour Party for their support. She received 18,875 votes, while her closest rival, Ashton Muncaster of the Reform Party, garnered 7,815 votes. The Conservative Party candidate, Frances Lasok, received 4,228 votes.
Onwurah assured her constituents of quality representation, writing on her X handle, “Thank you from the Labour team to everyone in Newcastle Central and West for putting your confidence in Labour and electing me as your Member of Parliament. We will not let you down!”
Former World Bank Treasurer Arunma Oteh also congratulated Onwurah on her X handle, saying, “Chi Onwurah candidate for Newcastle Upon Tyne elected and retained her seat. A hearty congratulations to the Co-Chair, APPG for Africa.”
According to Wikipedia, Onwurah’s mother was from Newcastle, and her father, from Nigeria, was working as a dentist while studying at Newcastle University Medical School when they met and married in the 1950s. Onwurah was born on April 12, 1965, in Wallsend, Northumberland. When she was an infant, the family moved to Awka, Nigeria, in 1965. However, the outbreak of the Biafra War two years later forced her mother to return to Tyneside with the children, while her father remained in Nigeria with the Biafran army.
Onwurah attended Kenton School in Newcastle and graduated from Imperial College London in 1987 with a degree in electrical engineering. She worked in various roles in hardware and software development, product management, market development, and strategy for several private sector companies across the UK, France, and the United States.
