A VETERAN Labour MP faces a battle to fight the next election after a re-selection process was triggered.
Margaret Hodge reacted in anger towards activists focusing on removing her rather than taking the fight to Boris Johnson.
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The challenge comes after she has previously claimed the anti-Semitism row could destroy the party.
She said: “I am obviously disappointed. My priority remains serving the people of Barking as I have done for the last 25 years.
“At a vital time for the country, with a general election looming, we should be focusing our efforts on holding Boris Johnson and the Tories to account.
“I will work to secure the full backing of Barking Labour Party, so I can continue to play my part as their MP in doing that.”
A contest can now be triggered if a third of local branches vote in favour under new party rules.
Hodge has previously called Jeremy Corbyn an “anti-Semite and racist” during an angry confrontation in the Commons.
The party currently faces a major probe by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission into whether Jewish people have been unlawfully discriminated against.
‘SHAMEFUL MOMENT’
The Jewish Labour Movement called the trigger ballot a “shameful moment” for the party after she had been the target of “vicious smears”.
She previously fought off BNP leader Nick Griffin at the 2010 election.
A party source said there is “nothing” to suggest the move is to do with anti-Semitism.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “Under long-standing Party rules, reselection processes have to be held in between general elections.
“This has happened before every general election since 2001, apart from the 2017 snap election.
“These are taking place in every Labour-held constituency across the country and in any reselection sitting MPs are automatically on the ballot paper.”
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