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BLAIR HOPES VOTERS WILL OPT FOR CHANGE
Tony Blair | John Major
(CNN) -- Tony Blair, the leader of the Labour Party, is in many ways a contrast to the man whose job he wants, Prime Minister John Major.
Younger, more dynamic and eager for change, Blair defies the expectations of tradition-bound Britons, which explains both his appeal and any uncertainty they have about him.
The champion of the traditional working class party, Blair favors pinstriped suits, and shares a gentrified Victorian house in North London with a senior barrister -- his intelligent, ambitious wife Cherie (Booth) -- and their three children.
There's not even a regional accent to help one pinpoint his origins. The New Yorker magazine describes his "impeccable Oxford diction ... the accent of a well-spoken professional who projects confidence and charm "
Born Anthony Charles Lynton Blair in Edinburgh, Scotland, 43 years ago, Labour's leader grew up in Australia and Durham, England, before going to boarding school in Edinburgh. His father, Leo, was a barrister who ran for Parliament as a Tory in 1963, but who was sidelined by a stroke during the campaign.
Aspired to be rock star
Blair graduated from St. John's College, Oxford, in 1975. He wore his hair long and, as lead singer for the band Ugly Rumors, aspired to be a rock star. But he also was a serious student and converted to Christianity while at school. He remains a practicing Anglican.
After a brief stint in Paris, he talked his way into a law apprenticeship with a barrister who had only planned on one pupil, already hired. It was Blair's future wife who had the first slot; they married in 1980.
Blair joined the Labour Party in 1975, and worked as a barrister for several years in London. His first campaign, in 1982, failed, but in 1983 he won the newly created Parliament seat representing Sedgefield, near his hometown of Durham.
He rose through the party ranks, holding several posts including shadow Secretary of State for Employment and culminating in shadow Home Secretary and membership on the Labour Party's National Executive Committee.
Then in 1994, when party leader John Smith died of a heart attack, Blair stepped into the void and was elected in a landslide. At 41, he was Labour's youngest-ever leader, and he promptly christened the party "New Labour."
An apparent pragmatist, Blair got the party to ditch its long-standing but increasingly unworkable love affair with nationalization. He has since worked hard to shift the party's image more toward the center and the proven success of more free market ideas -- the Conservatives' customary prerogative.
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