title: 1996 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election
text: # 1996 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election
  
  Elections to the Labour Party's Shadow Cabinet took place in July 1996. Under the rules then in effect, the Commons members of the Parliamentary Labour Party elected 19 members of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet, who were then assigned portfolios by the leader. The Labour peers elected the Leader of the Opposition in the House of Lords. In addition, the Leader of the Labour Party and Deputy Leader (Tony Blair and John Prescott, respectively) were members by virtue of those offices. The 19 elected members of the Shadow Cabinet were the ones with the largest number of votes. MPs were required to vote for at least four women, but women were not necessarily guaranteed places in the Shadow Cabinet.
  
  | Colour key | Retained in the Shadow Cabinet |
  | - | - |
  | Colour key | Joined the Shadow Cabinet |
  | Colour key | Voted out of the Shadow Cabinet |
  | Rank | Candidate | Constituency | Votes |
  | 1 | Margaret Beckett | Derby South | 251 |
  | 2 | Ann Taylor | Dewsbury | 250 |
  | 3 | Clare Short | Birmingham Ladywood | 218 |
  | 4 | Gavin Strang | Edinburgh East | 217 |
  | 5 | Robin Cook | Livingston | 215 |
  | 6 | Donald Dewar | Glasgow Garscadden | 212 |
  | 7 | Frank Dobson | Holborn and St Pancras | 211 |
  | 8 | Mo Mowlam | Redcar | 206 |
  | 9† | David Clark | South Shields | 205 |
  | 9† | Michael Meacher | Oldham West | 205 |
  | 11 | Ron Davies | Caerphilly | 201 |
  | 12 | Jack Cunningham | Copeland | 190 |
  | 13 | Jack Straw | Blackburn | 189 |
  | 14† | Gordon Brown | Dunfermline East | 188 |
  | 14† | Chris Smith | Islington South and Finsbury | 148 |
  | 16 | George Robertson | Hamilton | 182 |
  | 17† | David Blunkett | Sheffield Brightside | 175 |
  | 17† | Tom Clarke | Monklands West | 175 |
  | 19 | Harriet Harman | Peckham | 149 |
  | 20 | Ann Clwyd | Cynon Valley | 94 |
  | 21† | Lynne Jones | Birmingham Selly Oak | 66 |
  | 21† | Chris Mullin | Sunderland South | 66 |
  | 23 | Paul Flynn | Newport West | 61 |
  | 24 | Tony Banks | Newham North West | 47 |
  | 25 | Dennis Canavan | Falkirk West | 42 |
  | 26 | Jeremy Corbyn | Islington North | 37 |
  
  † Multiple candidates tied for position.
  
  