Thursday 20th May 2010

The race to succeed Gordon Brown as Labour leader became a real contest this morning when well known back bencher Diane Abbott announced she would be standing.
The MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, who in 1987 became the first female black politician to sit in the House of Commons, joins the Miliband brothers, Ed Balls, Andy Burnham and John McDonnell in the contest. Whilst the chances of her becoming the next Labour leader are slim (Ladbrokes have put her at 25/1), Abbott is perhaps the most qualified back bencher to put herself in the frame. She already has a recognisable public profile, sitting alongside Andrew Neil and Michael Portillo every Thursday night to analyse contempory political stories on This Week, and as the probable only female candidate she is best placed to win the vote of her fellow women MPs and grassroot members.
The six contenders now have a week to gather the backing of 33 Labour MPs, before the campaig officially begins. With the likes of Alan Johnson, Harriett Harman and Jon Cruddas ruling themselves out of the contest, it looks as though we now have our final list of who will stand.
This is the first proper Labour leadership contest since Tony Blair saw off John Prescott and Margaret Beckett 16 years ago, so it is a real opportunity to positively debate the best way of taking the party forward after the general election defeat earlier this month. Having Diane Abbott as one of candidates means more sections of the party are represented and if she shines in the campaign but ultimately falls short then perhaps a place in the Shadow Cabinet (I'm sure she could do well shadowing Theresa May as Equality Minister) may come calling.
The ballot opens on August 16th, closing on September 22nd, with the winner announced on the first day of the Autumn party conference. I will be keeping an open mind about who to vote for, Ed Miliband has my backing at the moment, but plenty of time for that to change.