Jeremy Corbyn to be Your Party leader after beating Zarah Sultana in leadership vote

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's slate has won the election for Your Party's Central Executive Committee, making him its parliamentary leader.

On Thursday morning the left-wing party elected its 24-strong Central Executive Committee (CEC), after months of infighting over the leadership and political platform of the new group.

Both Corbyn and his rival, Zarah Sultana, stood for election to the "public office holders" section of the CEC.

Corbyn's slate beat Sultana's by 14 seats to seven, giving his supporters control of the CEC. Sultana has also been elected onto the CEC.

The election saw a turnout of 25,347 (61 percent) out of 40,985 verified Your Party members.

At the founding conference in late November, members voted in favour of Sultana's choice to have a collective leadership rather than Corbyn's preferred single leader model.

Corbyn and Sultana then put forward rival slates of candidates, which included themselves.

Corbyn's slate, The Many, includes MPs Shockat Adam and Ayoub Khan, members – alongside Corbyn – of the parliamentary Independent Alliance.

Corbyn said: "I am delighted that members have voted for a mass, socialist party that takes the fight to Starmer and Farage… now, the real work begins.

"We have a precious opportunity to unite our movement around a bold vision for this country – one that believes in a more caring, equal and peaceful society for all."

He called for a "positive and inclusive party where all members feel empowered to share their ideas".

Battle between two visions

The contest has widely been seen as a battle between two rival visions for the party.

Corbyn, Adam and Khan favour the idea of a broad-church party focused on appealing to as many people as possible and drawing the previously disengaged into politics.

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Sultana's approach eschews compromising on leftist principles and focuses on a "member-led party" and empowering existing left-wing movements.

When Your Party was announced last summer, after Sultana left the Labour Party, it quickly gained hundreds of thousands of sign-ups and polled above 10 percent in national surveys.

It emerged largely because of the Israeli genocide in Gaza and perceived British complicity in that, which provoked a storm of outrage against Labour at the 2024 general election and contributed to the unprecedented election of five independent MPs (including former Labour MP Corbyn), who overcame local Labour machines. 

The independents campaigned on a general anti-establishment platform and have collaborated in parliament through the Independent Alliance on key domestic issues, such as opposing Labour's two-child benefit cap. 

But the party increasingly became wracked by bitter factional disputes.

Corbyn and Sultana's fallout

Initially it was thought that Sultana and Corbyn would be co-leaders. But tensions soon grew.

Sources close to Corbyn said they have been infuriated on numerous occasions by Sultana and her husband, Craig Lloyd, acting unilaterally, in a way they perceive as being rash and controlling.

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At the same time, sources closer to Sultana have decried the influence of long-time Corbyn allies like Karie Murphy, the former Labour leader's chief of staff when he was in opposition.

Some party sources believe that Murphy may, like a number of other former Corbyn staffers, end up stepping away from the whole project.

Sultana also argued with Adnan Hussain MP over the issue of trans rights last year.

In September, Hussain had said that "women's rights and safe spaces should not be encroached upon" and that trans women are "not biologically women, hence trans women", echoing the Supreme Court's ruling earlier last year.

Sultana responded by suggesting Hussain had no place in the party, declaring: "There is no room for socially conservative views in a left-wing socialist party. Period."

Conflict at conference

Hussain and another MP, Iqbal Mohamed, left in the two weeks leading up to the conference in November. 

In an interview with MEE outside the conference, which Sultana was boycotting, she rowed back on her previous comments, saying that "there are socially conservative people in all communities, in the trade union movement, in all parts of society, and we are seeking to reflect the whole country and seek their votes. 

"So obviously, even our membership will reflect that broad base. I don't deny that. I think it's important to highlight that as a socialist party, we have to centre the most marginalised."

She added that: "I think a progressive position on trans rights, that recognises that trans rights are human rights, is the socialist position for a socialist party."

But conflict continued at the conference, with Sultana criticising the leadership for expelling members who were also members of the Socialist Workers' Party.

Sultana's slate will now have a significant presence on the party's CEC, but Corbyn has emerged victorious.

MEE has contacted Sultana for comment.