Michael Marra has been elected leader of the Scottish Labour Party, succeeding Anas Sarwar who resigned in July to join the government of Prime Minister Andy Burnham. Marra, the North East Scotland MSP, won the leadership contest against Joe Fagan by 4,266 votes to 2,485.

The leadership change comes after Scottish Labour experienced its worst electoral performance since devolution, securing just 17 seats in the Scottish Parliament in May. This marked the party’s fifth consecutive defeat in Holyrood elections, underscoring the significant challenges Marra faces in revitalising Labour’s standing with voters in Scotland.

Marra, who previously worked at Dundee University and served as a Dundee councillor, took on the role of Scottish Labour’s education spokesperson in 2021 before becoming the party’s finance spokesperson. At 47 years old, he describes himself as being “rooted in Labour,” recalling attending trade union marches with his family during his childhood.

In his victory speech delivered in Edinburgh, Marra acknowledged the responsibility of his new role and outlined his approach to leadership. Emphasising a strategy focused on unity and grassroots engagement, he said he intends to prioritise “convening all those who have been failed, building movements and alliances, and delivering change,” rather than immediately adopting a combative political stance. His leadership style has been compared to that of Burnham, who has been credited with a consensual and people-centred approach in Manchester.

Marra takes over as the party seeks to recover from a period marked by internal divisions and poor electoral results. His predecessor, Anas Sarwar, who had described the Scottish Labour leadership as the “hardest job in British politics,” stepped down after calling on Labour leader Keir Starmer to resign and subsequently accepting a position in Burnham’s government as a trade minister in the House of Lords.

Marra is the 11th leader of the Scottish Labour Party in the devolution era and faces the task of rebuilding the party’s credibility and support in a competitive and politically complex Scottish landscape.