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Conor McGinn
First to declare, to our very own Patrick Maguire on the night of Watson’s resignation, was Conor McGinn, the Armagh-born MP for St Helens North since 2015. Aligned with the party’s old right and a former opposition whip, McGinn resigned from the shadow cabinet over the sacking of Rosie Winterton as chief whip in October 2016.
He has since forged a reputation from the backbenches as a campaigner and reformer, successfully amending legislation earlier this year to legalise equal marriage in Northern Ireland.
Dawn Butler
The shadow minister for women and equalities, Butler is the first member of the shadow cabinet to declare her intention to stand for the deputy leadership. MP for Brent Central since 2015, Butler has been a powerful advocate for women and minorities in her shadow ministerial role, and an effective performer at the despatch box. Announcing her candidacy to Bloomberg on Thursday (7 November), she pointed to her “track record” of “holding people to account around race, equality and justice” and of being “very supportive of our leader”.
This list will be updated as candidates declare.