A landslide for Michelle

NUJ members have voted heavily for Michelle Stanistreet, last year’s union president, as the next Deputy General Secretary. She is the first woman to hold one of the top leadership positions in the union’s 101-year history.

Michelle Stanistreet took 61 per cent of the count in a four-person poll, ahead of freelance organiser John Toner, Brussels freelance Philip Hunt and Coventry freelance Chris Youett.

She was expected to be confirmed in post by the national executive on July 24, succeeding John Fray, who retired at the end of May.

Michelle Stanistreet, who is 34, is a chapel rep and feature writer on the Sunday Express. She represents newspaper members on the national executive and last year was only the fourth woman NUJ president.

In an intensive campaign she was backed for the position by most of the leadership, including John Fray, General Secretary Jeremy Dear and many on the executive.

She told the Journalist: “It is amazing that there has not been a woman in the leadership before. I want to build on the strengths we have as a union.

“One of the strengths of my campaign was that we had reps and activists on board right across the union. It was a grass roots-led campaign.”

It is expected she will take up the position in the autumn.

HOW YOU VOTED

Michelle Stanistreet 2936

John Toner 1392

Philip Hunt 280

Chris Youett 225

27,505 ballot papers were distributed;

4,833 — 17.6 per cent — were returned.

The Journalist is published by the National Union of Journalists