Emily Thornberry’s hopes of leading the Labour party are over after she failed to make it on to the final members’ ballot.
Just hours before the deadline closed on Friday night it became apparent that she would fail to get the backing from the required 33 constituency Labour parties to send her through to the last round.
The shadow foreign secretary has struggled throughout the contest to get support despite her seniority in the party, receiving no union or socialist society backing – which is another way that would-be leaders can get through to the ballot.
By Friday night the Islington South & Finsbury MP only had the backing of 31 local parties and it appeared no more would declare before the deadline.
It means she will not get her name on the ballot paper that goes out to members, who have until 2 April to vote for who they want to succeed Jeremy Corbyn.
She had been travelling the length and breath of the country for weeks, often representing herself at individual CLP hustings in a bid to secure nominations while other candidates chose to send a proxy in their place. Her backing from local parties was disparate – with strong support from some parties in the south-west, particularly Cornwall.
She had the support of just one party in London – her own. Guildford members also backed her. She had chosen to launch her campaign in the Surrey town where she grew up with her single mother.
Just hours before nominations closed, she wrote on Twitter: “Your CLP can make all the difference! Nominate me to get the widest range of voices, skills and experience on the ballot. Labour members deserve to have the widest and best possible choice when deciding our next leader.”
