Your Party CEC elections — Vote for the Grassroots Left!

The elections to the Central Executive Committee (CEC) for Your Party are in full swing. While many independent candidates are running, the contest is mainly between two slates: the Grassroots Left, led by Zarah Sultana, and The Many, led by Jeremy Corbyn.

Behind the battle between Corbyn and Sultana lies a crucial contest over the future of Your Party. On the one hand, The Many are trying to present themselves as those who will bring Your Party “back on track”, and are hammering on the need to “turn outward” and stop the “navel-gazing”. But their platform contains no actual policy, other than a vague reference to Corbyn’s success when he was leading the Labour Party.

On the other hand, the Grassroots Left has put forward a 15-point platform, which notably stands in opposition to NATO, Zionism, the monarchy, British capitalism, and for a socialist transformation of the economy. It draws key lines against the British ruling class and seeks to put forward a radical and socialist vision for Your Party.

At bottom, the battle is over what kind of party we want. A socialist and working-class party that can really take the fight to Reform UK and Starmer? Or a vague liberal alliance, based on nostalgia for Corbyn’s Labour? And as we write, left-wing candidates are being banned from running. For us, the choice is clear: in these elections, we urge activists to campaign and vote for the Grassroots Left slate. Despite its shortcomings, it represents the best chance to make Your Party work and connect with working-class anger.

Turn outward, but to say what?

Corbyn’s slate The Many is right on some things: Your Party does need to turn outward. So far, the internal debates have been totally disconnected from the reality of the working class. The Many is also right to emphasise the need for “mending trust in the left among Muslim communities”. The growing gap between socialist activists and Muslims is a major problem that must be addressed urgently.

The problem, however, is that The Many’s platform and appeal are an obstacle to doing any of those things. Their mini platform contains only three points without any political lines or strategy. Rather, they rely entirely on the personal appeal of Corbyn. They write: “our vision…won millions upon millions of votes twice under Jeremy Corbyn”. In other words, they have not bothered to put forward an actual programme because they think Corbyn’s figure is enough, and we can just dust off the 2017 and 2019 election manifestos.

Let’s be clear: 2017/19 were years ago, and the political context has massively changed. Back then, Corbyn won the support of “the many”… and lost it. The 2019 elections were a complete disaster for Corbyn’s Labour, which lost millions of working-class votes to the Tories in large part because Corbyn campaigned for a second EU referendum. What lessons have The Many drawn? Not many, it seems.

Since then, society has only become more polarised, and the working class angrier at the political elite. A growing number of workers have turned to Farage and the far right. Why? Because they are desperate for a radical alternative to the status quo and the liberal establishment.

The lesson to draw from this, and the way to defeat Reform, isn’t to try to turn back the clock. It is to offer a radical alternative now, in 2026. The Grassroots Left platform is a step in this direction. For the last few months, Sultana has openly opposed NATO, the monarchy, Zionism and capitalism, and has generally been making the argument for a fighting, radical and working-class party.

In contrast, Corbyn has been making the same old reheated speeches for “peace” and “social justice”, carefully crafted not to offend anyone. Corbyn has also surrounded himself with ex-union bureaucrats, ex-Labour Party apparatchiks and moderate MPs. Those people live off the nostalgia of a bygone era and want to build a party palatable to liberals. This is why they are obsessed with purging far-left groups. This is also why The Many has avoided taking any position on the “hot” issues of NATO, Zionism or what socialism actually means—hoping to rally more moderate elements against the left wing of the party.

Indeed, behind their talk about ending “navel-gazing”, what is targeted are Sultana’s radical positions. When they speak of reconnecting with Muslims by “focusing on what unites us”, we can only assume that this means sweeping the question of trans rights under the carpet. And their appeals to end the “infighting” are all packaged to make Sultana and the far left bear full responsibility for the internal crisis. While none of this is ever said explicitly, anyone who pays attention knows it. This brand of politics, always ready to compromise with liberal and respectable elements, already failed in 2019. It will definitely not work in 2026.

The same point applies to the Muslim community, with whom the left does need to reconnect. Many Muslims are angry at Corbyn for his refusal to fight back against the Blairites’ witch hunts over anti-Semitism. A more moderate approach might appeal to the upper strata of the Muslim community. But Your Party has a much better chance of connecting with Muslim workers by taking a strong stance against Zionism and imperialism, and by presenting itself as a fighting force ready to confront the far-right threat head-on. These are points that explicitly feature in the Grassroots Left platform, and which Corbyn and The Many have been tiptoeing around.

If Your Party is to turn outward—and it definitely needs to—we need to do it based on a radical, socialist programme. This is how Your Party can start winning back workers who look to Reform and how it can win those who have tuned out of politics due to apathy. And it is also how Your Party can distinguish itself from the Greens—something which is also badly needed. The Many’s vague and moderate appeal will be no challenge to Farage.

The limitations of the Grassroots Left

One problem with the Grassroots Left is that they tend to backload their strongest point. The bulk of their appeal is geared towards members’ democracy, and most of the platform is made up of measures to modify the party’s internal structure. While many of these are absolutely correct, there is an illusion that if we had the right internal rules, the left wing could prevail. No rules will rein in the right wing of the party. What is needed is a political struggle. And the strongest asset of the Grassroots Left is its radical politics. This is what can actually make Your Party popular and win people on the doorstep.

But on this too, their socialist demands—correct in themselves—are put forward in an abstract manner, quite divorced from where the working class is. A case must be made as to why opposition to NATO, Zionism, or the monarchy isn’t just radical sloganeering, but is in fact crucial for working-class struggle today. These are weaknesses that The Many are already exploiting to paint the Grassroots Left as “navel-gazing” and “inward-looking”.

Another problem of the Grassroots Left is that it does not address the growing gap between the socialist left and Muslims. The platform correctly states “We stand with all communities and liberation for all people: Muslims, migrants, refugees, LGBTQ+, women, and disabled”, but this is a long way from resolving the deep divisions that have festered, particularly between pro-trans activists and Muslims. For this, the Grassroots Left needs to completely break with liberal identity politics, which have also contributed to pitting trans people and Muslims against each other (see “Sultana’s disastrous comment”, Workers Hammer leaflet, 12 September 2025).

Lastly, one of the main problems of the left has been a constant conciliation of the Corbyn wing. Sultana herself entertains the illusion that a reconciliation with Corbyn is possible, which only fuels confusion in the membership. Including Corbyn on the slate did just that. Corbyn is against the Grassroots Left. And on the other side, The Many have not bothered with such fake diplomacy and have not endorsed Sultana. So, let’s not entertain illusions.

Our tasks

Despite these problems, it is crucial for socialists to campaign for the Grassroots Left and make sure it gets the best results in the elections. A win, or even a strong showing, would put the Corbyn camp on the back foot and advance the fight to turn Your Party into a radical, socialist alternative.

A defeat for the left, and a victory for The Many would give them a mandate to purge socialist groups and maybe even Sultana herself. It would consolidate the leadership of the party in the hands of people who want to turn it into a wishy-washy alliance, suitable for union bureaucrats and liberals.

This is why those who are considering running as or supporting independents are wrong. Many who are fed up with the Corbyn/Sultana fight hope in this way to stand above the fray. But political struggles must be taken as they are, not as we wish them to be. Standing as independents only divides the left vote. We urge candidates to endorse the Grassroots Left platform, and to either join its list or stand down.

The task of authentic socialists must be to make the arguments in favour of the Grassroots Left slate in party meetings. We must be patient with those who might want to support Corbyn and The Many. Demagogy and insults will only strengthen their appeal, and the debates have been confusing, to say the least. For some, it is quite the shock to realise that Corbyn stands on the right wing of Your Party. We must explain patiently what these elections are about and why the Grassroots Left slate is the best way forward.