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14 August 2008updated 12 Oct 2023 10:05am

The fight for the soul of the party

The battle lines are now drawn between the two factions fighting for the Labour succession

By Staff Blogger

In the Red Corner

The Candidate: David Miliband

The Organisation: Progress, the Blairite magazine and campaign group previously led by Peter Mandelson

The Thinkers: Phil Collins (former No 10 adviser and speechwriter) and Richard Reeves (new director of the Demos think tank and former special adviser to Frank Field)

Cabinet backers: James Purnell, John Hutton Popular appeal: Instantly recognisable. Women like him

Back-bench support? Doubts about loyalty but centre right trusts him

In the Even Redder Corner

The Candidate: Jon Cruddas

The Organisation: Compass, increasingly influential left-wing campaign group within the Labour Party

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The Thinkers: Neal Lawson (founder of Compass and managing editor of the Labour journal Renewal) and John Harris (pop music writer and Guardian columnist)

Cabinet backers: None Popular appeal: A “bit of a lad”. Unions like him, but an unknown quantity

Back-bench support? Liked by traditional Labour MPs and old Labour diehards, but modernisers see a dangerous lefty

Read “The factions square up”
By Martin Bright

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