Who's in the running to be new Labour deputy leader?

Angela Rayner’s resignation has sparked a battle for the soul of the Labour Party.

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The contest to replace her as deputy leader is shaping up to be a battle between the left of the party and Sir Keir Starmer’s Downing Street operation.

The race is being seen as a referendum on Starmer’s leadership. Left-wingers, and many on the soft left, want an open contest to replace Rayner, with MPs from across the political spectrum allowed to put forward and debate their ideas. Downing Street, according to reports, is keen to impose a Starmer loyalist such as new home secretary Shabana Mahmood to the role, with fears that No 10 could seek to stitch up the contest to see off the left. Those fears were heightened when general secretary Hollie Ridley wrote to members and staff that the contest would be “conducted in a manner that befits the party of government”.

With the rules of the contest yet to be decided, The Independent looks at who the potential runners and riders are for the role.

Emily Thornberry