Afolami was the Conservative Party candidate for Lewisham Deptford at the 2015 general election, where he finished in second place with 7,056 votes. He was selected as the Conservative candidate for Hitchin and Harpenden constituency in 2017 following the announcement that the sitting Conservative MP, Peter Lilley, was to stand down. He has described Winston Churchill as his "biggest hero". In 2018, Afolami was named one of the Franco-British Council's Young Leaders. In January 2018, it was revealed that Afolami had claimed £2,000 in expenses for subscription to the European Research Group. In April 2018, Afolami was a member of the delegation to Beijing for the tenth Anniversary Leadership Forum, led by David Lidington MP. The Forum, entitled "Partners for Progress: Strengthening the UK-China relationship in the Golden Era", aimed to discuss practical cooperation between the UK and China. In May 2018, it was announced that Afolami would be one of 14 members of the Conservative Reform Group, a group of centrist Conservative MPs. Afolami voted "Remain" in the 2016 referendum on EU membership. At the end of 2018, Afolami joined the Steering Committee of the Constitution Reform Group, a cross-party pressure group chaired by Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, which supports the Act of Union Bill 2018, a Private Member's Bill introduced by Lord Lisvane in the House of Lords on 9 October 2018. In September 2018, Afolami was appointed parliamentary private secretary in the Department for Transport. In February 2019, Afolami was appointed PPS to the Secretary of State for International Development followed by his appointment as PPS to the Secretary of State for International Trade Liz Truss and his most recent appointment as PPS to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Therese Coffey. In December 2018 Afolami announced his support for Theresa May's Brexit deal. Afolami is Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Credit Unions and a Commissioner for the Financial Inclusion Commission, a financial inclusion campaign group. Afolami is very active in supporting charities and other voluntary groups. He is patron of Harpenden Spotlight on Africa a charity working in health and education in rural Uganda. He is also patron of GRIT and Tilehouse Counselling, two mental health charities in his constituency. Afolami also sits on the advisory board of the Social Market Foundation and on the Programme Committee of the Ditchley Foundation.
