Shorten, Albanese face off for leadership
Anthony Albanese and Bill Shorten are poised to contest the Labor leadership in an unprecedented month-long ballot process split between caucus and party members.
Mr Shorten, who has long held leadership ambitions, let it be known yesterday that he would be a candidate when Labor MPs and senators attend a special meeting in Canberra on Friday.
But the former union leader turned parliamentary kingpin faces a grassroots backlash from party members furious at the prospect of backroom deals installing the next Labor leader.
_The West Australian _understands Mr Albanese will also nominate after being lobbied hard by colleagues, friends and party members.
At Friday's meeting, Kevin Rudd will declare the leader's role open. If there is more than one nomination, new rules introduced by Mr Rudd last month mean selection will take a month, culminating in a ballot of caucus members and a ballot of 40,000 ALP members, equally weighted.
Although a caucus vote would likely be close, Mr Albanese's backers say he would easily win the rank-and-file vote. He has gained unexpected support in the form of Facebook and Twitter petitions set up by ALP members.
"We really want Albo to be the next Labor leader and in just a few days hundreds of people have joined us," albo4laborleader convener Victoria Brookman said.
"He can bring the party together, having worked well with both Gillard and Rudd. He's Labor's best parliamentary performer. And he has a compelling personal story and an excellent record as a minister and deputy leader."
Mr Shorten's backers are attempting to stitch up support through factional deals.
Frontbencher Tony Burke said the new leader must be backed all the way to the next election.
"Some people are talking about strategies where you put someone there for a while and switch later," Mr Burke said. "After everything we've been through … any strategy that begins with the principle you're going to switch leaders is a bad strategy."
Senior Labor MP Brendan O'Connor yesterday joined former ministers Craig Emerson, Greg Combet and Stephen Smith in calling on Mr Rudd to quit politics to avoid destabilisation.
"Kevin should seriously contemplate leaving to allow whoever's the leader to get on with us taking it up to the coalition," Mr O'Connor said.
"If you have a former prime minister sitting in your party room on the backbench, that spectre looms large."
