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The race for the Labour Party’s next deputy leader took a turn with Alison McGovern dropping out of the contest. McGovern threw her support behind Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, as it became apparent that she would not secure the necessary backing of 80 MPs by Thursday’s deadline. Phillipson, already a frontrunner, had amassed 44 nominations by the end of Tuesday, with former Commons leader Lucy Powell following closely with 35 supporters, and Bell Ribeiro-Addy on the left of the party with eight endorsements.
McGovern’s decision to withdraw from the race early was to allow her backers to switch their support before the deadline. She expressed her confidence in Phillipson’s ability to unite the party and nominated her as the best candidate for the role. With approximately 300 Labour MPs yet to declare their favored candidate, there is still an opportunity for other campaigns to gain momentum before the deadline.
There is speculation within the party on whether Phillipson will garner enough support to be the only candidate with the required MP backing. Some rival camps suspect that this arrangement would align with the preferences of Downing Street, facilitating a swift conclusion to the contest. While the cabinet has refrained from nominating any candidate, junior ministers are permitted to do so. The upcoming virtual hustings will provide an opportunity for the six candidates to engage with Labour MPs and present their vision for the party’s future.
Calls have been made from senior Labour figures advocating for a female deputy leader from northern England to counterbalance the current London-centric and male-dominated party leadership. Phillipson and Powell, the leading candidates, have outlined their plans to represent different segments of the party and emphasize the importance of unity and collaboration to secure a broad voter coalition. The subsequent stages of the election will involve securing support from local parties or affiliated groups before facing a vote by party members, with the winner set to be announced on 25th October
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