Left candidate loses council leadership race after national party ordered re-run

A left-wing Labour councillor thought to have won the race to lead London’s Southwark council last week has lost a re-run of the contest by a whisker, after party officials overturned the initial result over alleged breaches of process in the first ballot.

The rare seeming victory for a left-wing candidate under Keir Starmer’s leadership has been reversed, after a second ballot was held this week which saw them lose, LabourList understands.

Sarah King (pictured) will be the new leader of the council, after beating James McAsh by a reported two-vote margin. “It’s good news for the Labour group, wider party and our borough,” one local Labour source said.

READ MORE: Southwark leader race ‘to be re-run over rule breach claims’ as left-winger wins

Some votes in the initial internal group contest are said to have been cast by proxy, and the contest was tight enough for this to have affected the result. This appears to have been reported to the regional London Labour office, which in turn appears to have ruled that proxy voting was not allowed and told the Labour group to hold the ballot again.

McAsh had looked set to become the new leader of the Labour group in south London last week, and had defended the initial process to Southwark News last week too. “The election took place under the same rules, following the same precedents and with independent observers as has previously been the case. No objections were raised and no complaints were made. All candidates were gracious in welcoming the result. I have had no communication from the Labour Party to suggest that I am not the Leader of Southwark Labour.”

McAsh, King and the Southwark Labour group were not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.

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King’s website says she has been a councillor since 2010, and is the current chair of the group. It adds that the Champion Hill councillor is passionate about providing affordable housing and tackling the climate emergency.

A self-described socialist and former supporter of former leader Jeremy Corbyn, McAsh was elected to represent Goose Green ward on Southwark Council in 2018.

He has held roles in the local authority’s cabinet. McAsh is currently the Cabinet Member for Clean Air, Streets & Waste.

His election comes after Councillor Kieron Williams recently announced he would stand down as council leader.

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