To become a candidate in the party's election, 35 nominations from Labour MPs are needed. Commentators in the media widely predicted that Corbyn would struggle to get this many. However, he managed at a very late stage, to secure enough support, with 36 nominations in total. Around 12 of the MPs who nominated him actually supported other candidates, but "lent" him their support in order to widen the contest. Corbyn was reported to say: "We had two minutes to spare, it was easy."