Whatever your political position, and whatever your personal perception, Jeremy Corbyn’s tenure as leader of the Labour Party will live long in the memory. Corbyn made an instant impact as leader and shook up everything that had been established during the 15 previous years.
But ultimately the far-left leader failed in his objective to wrestle power away from the Conservatives – a task that will likely face Joe Biden later this year when he takes on Donald Trump in the Presidential Election, so what lessons can Biden learn from Corbyn’s failure to win an election?
Out with the New
Corbyn’s rise to power in the Party came after a period of great change for the party. Tony Blair’s election as leader in 1994 and the move to the centre that followed was a huge success and, following nearly 20 years out of office, Blair took power in 1997.
His new brand of Labour politics engaged a broader spectrum of voters, although many of the party’s old guard grew disenchanted with their Party’s bold new direction. And by the time David Cameron replaced Gordon Brown as Prime Minister in 2010, Labour appeared to have lost its freshness, with its identity diminished.
Ed Miliband followed, leading Labour for five years, but election success eluded the Doncaster North MP and the party seemed as far from office as it had been during the peak of Margaret Thatcher’s power in the 1980s. Another change was on the way.
Corbyn became Labour leader on 12 September 2015 and set about restoring the party’s socialistic principles that had long since been abandoned. The Islington MP of more than 30 years had risen to power in the Party against all the odds and the momentum of his victory continued into his first year in the role.
The groundswell of support, especially from the far left, set the UK’s political compass spinning once more, but Corbyn was unable to achieve what he set out to do. Accusations of anti-Semitism dogged the party, while the leader’s stance on Brexit left many floating voters frustrated.
Lessons to learn
Labour increased its share of the vote in 2017 after Corbyn had won a second leadership contest a year earlier, but a less successful result two years later put paid to the democratic socialist’s hopes of wrestling power away from the Conservatives for the first time in nine years.
Prior to the election, Labour had appeared to be in with a fighting chance – at least that’s what social media would have had you believe. The grassroots movement was difficult to ignore and all the momentum appeared to be with Corbyn, but a comprehensive defeat would follow.
I promised @UKLabour would run the biggest people powered campaign our country has ever seen.
And you, our members and supporters, have done just that.
You’re the heart of our party, and you have campaigned tirelessly to win so we can a build a fairer country.
I thank you all. pic.twitter.com/Pic0pw9FCU
? Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) December 12, 2019
Often, you can use the weight of opinion on social media as a reasonable yardstick, but there were bigger factors at play, such as anti-semitism and Brexit, and the lack of a defined position on key, present issues. Love him or hate him, Trump’s position on a range of subjects is clear – and that appeals to people.
Biden is the Democratic candidate in all but name only if you’re intending to bet on politics with the last odds from Betfair due to Bernie Sanders’ decision to end his campaign, so the former vice president will follow in the footsteps of Hilary Clinton in becoming the Democratic candidate and both are similarly placed on the political spectrum, so Biden is not as at risk of alienating existing support as Corbyn was, but he should seek to be as decisive as Trump is on key issues.
Another factor in Corbyn’s downfall was the cult of personality that surrounded him, which was enough to command adoration and detestability in almost equal measure. But Biden’s strategy appears to be the collective abilities of his cabinet, which means that the electorate’s opinion of the candidate himself may not be as make or break.
Together, we will defeat Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/2nF0qVGGaH
? Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) April 16, 2020
If Biden can be clear on major issues, like Corbyn wasn’t, avoid scandal swallowing his party, which Labour was unable to, and build an offering to voters that is multi-faceted and that doesn’t revolve around his own likeability, then he may stand a chance of succeeding where Labour failed.
