New members boost to Sarwar campaign
ANAS Sarwar’s campaign to be Scottish Labour leader got a boost last night after it emerged thousands of new members have signed up to vote.
Allies of the former deputy leader were cheered by figures released by party officials showing 34,939 Scots will get a say in who replaces Kezia Dugdale.
The battle against left- winger Richard Leonard has been mired in controversy over who should get a vote.
Leonard’s team have recruited hundreds of new affiliated “supporters” through unions, a process that has been criticised by the Sarwar team.
Sarwar’s allies have attempted to sign up a significant number of new members with a heavy focus on Scotland’s Asian community.
When the window for new sign-ups closed last month there were 24,096 members, 10,760 affiliated supporters and 83 registered supporters.
It’s understood there were around 21,500 members and 9500 affiliated supporters on the day Dugdale resigned – suggesting new members outnumber new affiliated supporters.
Leonard is widely seen as the firm favourite, with Ladbrokes making Sarwar a 4-1 outsider.
But a source close to Sarwar said: “I expect the odds will narrow significantly once this information gets out. This contest is too close to call.”