Former cabinet minister Andrew Adonis has failed to make the longlist for selection as Labour’s next candidate in Vauxhall, the New Statesman has learned.
The Labour peer – who served in a succession of ministerial roles under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and stood in May’s European elections – was not among the seven-strong list of prospective candidates to replace the retiring Kate Hoey, with local candidates given the nod instead.
Longlisted ahead of Adonis were Lambeth mayor Ibrahim Dogus; Katy Clark, the former North Ayrshire and Arran MP and aide to Jeremy Corbyn; Claire Holland, the deputy leader of Lambeth councillor; London Assembly member Florence Eshalomi; Wandsworth councillor Maurice Macleod; Lambeth councillor Lucy Caldicott; and Stephen Beer, a former chair of the constituency party.
Emily Wallace, another former chair of the CLP who was considered a strong contender by members, was also excluded.
Dogus, a restaurateur whose stewardship of the British Kebab Awards has earned him a considerable media profile in Westminster, starts the race with the endorsement of Unite, the GMB and the Bakers’ Union. He is also close to Jeremy Corbyn.
His candidacy nonetheless divides opinion in a local party whose general council voted unanimously for an all-woman shortlist in August. 50 per cent of the longlisted candidates are male.
Clark, meanwhile, has the backing of the CLP’s organised left, but is perceived by some to insufficiently supportive of Remain.
Shortlisting interviews will take place at Labour’s Southside HQ on Monday.
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