Chingford Labour to select candidate from all-BAME women shortlist

Labour members in the target seat of Chingford and Woodford Green are set to select a parliamentary candidate from an all-BAME women shortlist, according to a well-placed source.

Though the shortlist has not yet been confirmed as there are disputes over one of the candidates’ eligibility, LabourList has learnt that four Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) candidates are currently thought to be on the shortlist under consideration.

The provisional list includes director of Class think tank Faiza Shaheen, Waltham Forest councillor Yemi Osho, former Richmond Park candidate Cate Tuitt and Islington councillor Michelline Safi Ngongo.

Chingford’s candidate is expected to be the second BAME woman – after Faten Hameed in Glasgow Central – selected by Labour in a marginal seat ahead of the next election.

The all-BAME women shortlist means left-wing Jenny Lennox – endorsed by fellow Labour Representation Committee member John McDonnell – is knocked out of the selection race. Lennox was previously considered to be one of two frontrunners alongside Shaheen.

As reported on LabourList last month, although Lennox is a Momentum member, it is Shaheen who has secured the backing of the grassroots campaign group as well as trade unions including Unite the Union, Aslef, BFAWU and TSSA.

Chingford and Woodford Green is currently held by former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, who has represented the seat since its creation in 1997.

However, the constituency has become increasingly marginal at every election and Duncan Smith now has a majority of just 2,438 votes.