Corbyn to be Your Party parliamentary leader as Sultana joins leadership committee

Jeremy Corbyn is to become the de facto leader of Your Party, after an election in which his rival Zarah Sultana was also voted on to the party’s leadership committee.The former Labour leader’s allies declared victory immediately after the vote in which Corbyn-backed candidates took 14 of the 24 available places on the party’s central executive committee (CEC). Sultana-backed candidates took seven of the seats and three went to independents.Your Party, which has a collective leadership model and will be led by the CEC, announced that 25,347 people had voted out of a potential 40,985 verified members, a 61% turnout.Corbyn, who will become the parliamentary leader of the party, said it was time for the “real work” to begin and that the movement had to come together to defeat “the fear, divisiveness and racism of Reform”.“I am delighted that members have voted for a mass, socialist party that takes the fight to Starmer and Farage,” he said. “Now, the real work begins. We have a precious opportunity to unite our movement around a bold vision for this country – one that creates a more caring, equal and peaceful world for all. I look forward to working with all members to make this vision a reality.”Sultana has fallen out with Corbyn on a number of issues in the past six months. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The GuardianDespite the decision to govern the party using a collective leadership model, the election has widely been seen as a battle for its future, with different visions having been offered by the co-founders Corbyn and Sultana. Both put forward a “slate” of candidates, with Corbyn’s “The Many” slate seeking to appeal to a ​​ broader coalition of leftwing voters and “campaign on the big issues”, such as the cost of living and Palestine.Sultana’s “Grassroots Left” slate offered a narrower ideological vision, emphasising the need for “maximum member democracy”, and warned against the danger of “Labour 2.0” if Corbyn’s camp won. Candidates with no affiliation also stood, with some complaining that independent voices had been crowded out by the two big names.After the result, there was little sign of an end to the conflict that has dogged the party, with Sultana’s Grassroots Left issuing a statement warning there must be “no more witch-hunts or stitch-ups” and calling for the reinstatement of its members who had been expelled.Sultana, who has fallen out with Corbyn on a number of issues in the past six months including over the launch of Your Party and the gathering of funds from a membership portal, said that while her Grassroots Left slate had not secured “the result we hoped for” it had “sent a clear message”.She added: “Now is the time to work together. The stakes are too high. With fascism growling at the door, we must take the fight to the country on the cost of living crisis, the housing emergency, the climate emergency and in standing firmly against genocide and injustice wherever it occurs.”Sultana said she remained committed to “building a socialist, anti-imperialist, anti-Zionist party”, adding: “The work continues – together.”Sources close to Sultana said she had no intention of quitting the party despite Corbyn’s victory. “She will stay and fight,” they said. “She’ll be fighting with the other seven women that have been elected from Grassroots Left to make sure that the party is as democratic as it can be and to give as much power to the members as ‘The Many’ will allow.”The 24-person CEC – on which 20 women will sit – will decide who takes the roles of chair, deputy chair, secretary, treasurer, political officer and spokesperson. After months of public spats, rows over money, accusations of sexism and rifts over policy and direction, Your Party is hoping to turn a page on the controversies that have beset it since its launch in July last year.About 800,000 people initially joined a mailing list expressing an interest in the new party after it was launched by Sultana and Corbyn. But by September, their unity spectacularly imploded when Sultana encouraged supporters to become paying members for £55. Corbyn told supporters to ignore an email requesting funds. Sultana shot back, accusing the party of being run by a “sexist boys’ club”.Sultana later boycotted the first day of the party’s inaugural conference in solidarity with delegates who were expelled over links to other leftwing parties, describing the process as a “witch-hunt”.The Guardian understands that a dispute about the funds raised in the early days of the party is ongoing, with legal letters continuing between the Corbyn and Sultana camps.