We can’t let this be a one-term government.
“If there was an election tomorrow, which party would you vote for?”. That’s the question we’re told to ask voters on the doorstep.
But if there actually were an election tomorrow, Labour might well lose it.
Labour members have spent fourteen years campaigning for a progressive government. Now that we finally have one, it risks becoming a one-term government – a once-in-a-generation opportunity to rebuild this country squandered by factionalism and scandal.
Whichever poll we choose, the outcome looks the same: electoral collapse for the party, disaster for the country.
It is not hard to see why. From “freebie-gate” to winter fuel cuts, from defending Peter Mandelson to suspending MPs who opposed welfare cuts, there is a long list of self-inflicted wounds. On arms sales to Israel, even Greenpeace – one of the more moderate climate NGOs – has labelled Keir Starmer as “wanted for fuelling genocide”. That alone should tell us that we have lost our way.
This chaos – the mistakes, the poor judgment – has to stop.
The party is electing Angela Rayner’s replacement as Deputy Leader. Of the two candidates, only Lucy Powell recognises the problem facing the party. She’s called for a “change of culture” in Downing Street to prevent our rapid descent.
She’s right. Even this month, a senior advisor was forced to resign over misogynistic comments about Diane Abbott. Other aides have briefed that he shouldn’t have gone. It also emerged that Starmer knew about Mandelson’s Epstein links before his appointment as US Ambassador.
All suggests a rotten political culture. All brings us closer to electoral collapse.
We are staring down the barrel of a Reform-majority government. Not because the far-right is wildly popular, but because our broken democratic system risks handing them power. The two-party system is fracturing. While Reform swallows up the Conservatives’ right-wing voter base, the left-of-centre vote is splintering between the Lib Dems, the Greens and the new left party.
This fragmentation of the progressive vote could prove catastrophic: the same “efficient vote distribution” which brought us to power in 2024 with fewer votes than in 2019 could now land Nigel Farage in No. 10 with even less popular support.
To beat the right, we must unify the left vote. That starts with electing Lucy Powell as Deputy Leader.
The election has repeatedly been described as a proxy battle: Andy Burnham versus Keir Starmer, the soft-left against the Labour right, even a struggle over the party’s soul. But in practice, it is a referendum on democracy itself.
Lucy Powell has long advocated for electoral reform. As Shadow Leader of the Commons she was open to changing our voting system. Upon her recent sacking by Keir Starmer, she warned that the ‘future of our democracy looks uncertain’ and called for a renewed commitment to representational politics.
By contrast, Bridget Phillipson appears ideologically opposed to moving beyond First Past the Post, saying that despite the mandate of our party conference she wouldn’t advocate for any change to our electoral system. This matters.
The leadership is weak on electoral reform. Even when restoring the supplementary vote for Mayoral elections, this was supported on the basis that the size of Mayoral constituencies made greater consensus necessary – thereby continuing the leadership’s opposition to reforming parliamentary and municipal elections. In sticking to this, Phillipson risks repeating the same mistakes with disastrous consequences.
In the same way it delivered Labour’s 2024 supermajority with a low vote share, we know that First Past the Post can also empower the right. We only have to look at the recent mayoral elections, where the previous Conservative government had scrapped the supplementary voting system and reintroduced First Past the Post, precisely to rig them in their favour.
We cannot sit idly by waiting for a Reform-led government. While we are in government, with our historic majority, Labour has an opportunity to make our democracy fit for purpose. We need leaders that will take it.
The government must introduce a fair voting system, one that empowers the progressive majority in this country. If we don’t, we risk splitting that majority four ways and handing power to a rising far-right.
Lucy Powell has shown herself to be the candidate for the moment. Voters are desperate for leadership with real direction and values. After five years as leader, the majority of voters still do not know what Keir Starmer stands for or what our government is trying to achieve. That’s not good enough.
Powell has stepped up as the candidate for progressive change. She has pledged to amplify the voices of party members and ensure our government acts in line with our values.Labour members have repeatedly backed electoral reform. Now is the time for someone to bring it back to the top of the agenda.
If we’re going to rebuild trust and unite the left, we need a politics built on consensus, not control. Backing Lucy Powell and her support for real electoral reform is the best chance we have to save the future.
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Ash Taylor and Minesh Parekh are both Labour Party members based in Sheffield, and supporters of Mainstream Labour. Minesh is also a Labour and Co-operative councillor.
All blog posts represent the views of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Mainstream.
