The two most prominent figures in your party are still divided over how it should be run as its inaugural convention begins this weekend.
Jeremy Corbyn confirmed to reporters on Saturday that he prefers a single leader and is likely to stand for the role, but his co-founder Zarah Sultana said she would vote for collective leadership and believes parties should not be run by “single personalities”.
The Guardian understands that Sultana will contest against Corbyn if members decide to elect a leader.
Delegates in Liverpool will choose between electing a leader or a group of ordinary members – those not already serving as MPs or councilors – to run the fledgling left-wing movement.
The party has been beset by infighting since Sultana first announced its plans in July after announcing her defection from the Labor Party, saying she and Corbyn would co-lead a new political organisation. Corbyn’s allies were quick to point out that a final decision had not been made.
The pair have established a delicate peace, with Sultana comparing their relationship to that of Noel and Liam Gallagher. Corbyn said on Saturday he would “probably support a single leadership model” but would “stick with whatever (members) decide”.
Asked by the Guardian whether he would run, Corbyn said: “Whatever capacity the party wants me to serve in, I’m very happy to serve them in that capacity.”
Sultana said she supports collective leadership in the absence of an alternative to two co-leaders. He said: “I have publicly supported the co-leadership model. The fact that it has not been given to members as an option to vote on is regrettable, and the fact that the decision has been taken by a nameless, anonymous bureaucrat is quite worrying.”
She said she was an “advocate of collective leadership” because she felt it offered “maximum member democracy”.
He said, “I don’t think movements should be led by single personalities. I think you have to represent the broader mass movement.” “This allows responsibility to be shared and more people’s views to be heard. It strengthens the movement. With that, comes a structure in which there is a parliamentary convenor. They are also elected by the membership.
“Should members choose sole leadership, I would consider throwing my hat in the ring. Then whatever decision the members make I will respect and fully follow behind.”
Corbyn and Sultana said they would consider an electoral pact with other left-wing parties, including the Greens.
Sultana said: “I think we have to work with the Greens and other parties to stop Nigel Farage from going to Number 10. This should be the guiding principle for all of us who want to stop fascism.”
Corbyn said it would be “essentially a decision for local branches of your party” to decide what was best in their area, but said he would not rule out co-operation with the Green Party, which has enjoyed a surge in popularity under its new leader Jack Polanski.
Tensions between former Labor leader Corbyn, now an independent MP for Islington North, and Sultana, who represents Coventry South, rose when Sultana launched a membership portal, collecting almost £800,000 in donations and a trove of members’ data.
Sultana said on Saturday that £600,000 had already been transferred from a holding company to Your Party and the remaining funds would be sent when liabilities were processed.
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She said she was now getting on “really well” with Corbyn and the pair had been chatting about the conference, adding that they wanted “a positive, enjoyable experience where members feel empowered”.
However, she was absent when she delivered her initial address to members on Saturday morning amid tensions with some of her colleagues. Relations between Corbyn’s former chief of staff Carrie Murphy and Sultana are believed to be particularly strained.
Sultana acknowledged that there is still a “toxic culture” in her party that leads to “bullying, intimidation and defamation” and “deliberate acts of sabotage”.
She said: “I can definitely say that the toxic culture that I have experienced needs to be rooted out. I would say that is straight from the Labor Right’s handbook. It is shocking to experience that in a new leftist, socialist party. We need to root out that culture.
“I think there are people who are around Jeremy – not Jeremy himself – who have learned the wrong lessons from their time in the Labor Party, where they were on the wrong end of the smears, sabotage, attacks in the right-wing press… They are now using the same tactics when really we should have a healthy environment of debate and disagreement.”
In his speech on Saturday, Corbyn called for unity. “As a party, we have to come together and be united, because division and disunity will not serve the interests of the people we seek to represent,” he said.
He also called for “public, democratic ownership” of the water industry, led the slogan of “Free, Free Palestine” and urged party members to “campaign forever for real socialism and real social justice.”
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