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[[File:55 Call Lane, Leeds (24th June 2010) 002.jpg|thumb|The Yorkshire, North East and Humberside regional headquarters is in [[Leeds]]]]
In July 2020, McCluskey said he would stand down in 2021, with an early election to select a new general secretary.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Reporter|first=Patrick Maguire, Red Box|title=Len McCluskey: Pressure on Keir Starmer as union boss confirms early exit|newspaper=[[The Times]]|language=en|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/len-mccluskey-pressure-on-keir-starmer-as-union-boss-confirms-early-exit-290zlphq5|access-date=2020-07-26|issn=0140-0460}}</ref> The United Left faction held a primary to decide which candidate to support in the election, considering two assistant general secretaries: Howard Beckett and Steve Turner. Beckett has been endorsed by the blog ''[[The Skwawkbox]]'' and the former general secretary of the Labour Party [[Jennie Formby]].<ref name=":0" /> Turner was a member of the
The election was called in April 2021, with nominations closing in June, voting held in July and the result announced on 26 August.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Unite leadership race under way as union announces election to decide Len McCluskey's successor|url=https://news.sky.com/story/unite-leadership-race-under-way-as-union-announces-election-to-decide-len-mccluskeys-successor-12275648|access-date=2021-05-03|website=Sky News|language=en}}</ref> The threshold to join the ballot was increased from 50 to around 150 by a combination of an increase in the percentage of branches required to nominate a candidate and a less restrictive definition of what counts as a branch. The change was criticised as a "stitch-up" by critics of McCluskey, because it gave more power to union officials who had sole discretion to request nomination packs for newly-created branches.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-04-14|title=Unite Union Facing 'Stitch-Up' Claim Over McCluskey Successor Election|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/unite-len-mccluskey-successor-election-stitch-up_uk_6075f73fe4b01e3042377e5a|access-date=2021-05-03|website=HuffPost UK|language=en}}</ref> The nomination period closed on 7 June, with the numbers of valid nominations being:<ref name=guardian-20210618>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/10/four-candidates-for-unite-leader-through-to-members-ballot |title=Four candidates for Unite leader through to members' ballot |last=Walker |first=Peter |newspaper=The Guardian |date=18 June 2021 |access-date=18 June 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Unite 2021 general secretary election|url=https://www.unitetheunion.org/who-we-are/structure/unite-2021-general-secretary-election/|access-date=2021-06-15|website=Unite |language=en |url-status=deviated |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531070733/https://www.unitetheunion.org/who-we-are/structure/unite-2021-general-secretary-election/ |archive-date= May 31, 2021 }}</ref>
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