It’s worth pointing this out in very plain English. Winning 62% of the vote in a two-horse race is not more convincing than winning 60% in a four-horse race.
Both of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour leadership victories were powerful but last year’s sent the clearest message, bearing in mind Owen Smith actually won more votes on Saturday than Andy Burham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall put together in 2015.
Corbyn has won two elections in two years and now has an undeniable mandate to lead Labour. This can only be negated by an election defeat, which does not look like happening any time soon given the noises coming from Downing Street.
So what now for Labour? That is the big question. Do the so-called moderates stay and fight? Do they stay and try to be loyal? Do they quit the party? Will they be purged by hard left activists?
And how does Scottish Labour react? Kezia Dugdale, who has a massive mandate of her own but has suffered a poor election result, backed Smith. It would seem most members north of the border agreed with her.
She has won greater autonomy but the purse strings are still looked after by London. How does she marry disparate factions?
These types of questions are best answered with cool heads and rational discussion.
As Labour conference begins in Liverpool, where five days in hot and sweaty rooms are broken up only by alcohol over indulgence, both of these are likely to be in short supply.
