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[[File:Ed Miliband 2.jpg|thumbnail|Ed Miliband]]
'''Milifandom''' is an online campaign celebrating [[Ed Miliband]], former leader of the [[Labour Party (UK)|British Labour Party]]. The campaign was thought to have been started on Twitter by a 17-year-old student, [[Abby Tomlinson]],<ref>{{cite web|last1=Nianias|first1=Helen|title=Louise Mensch accused of bullying 17-year-old #Milifandom leader Abby Tomlinson|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/louise-mensch-accused-of-bullying-17yearold-milifandom-leader-abby-tomlinson-10261599.html|work=The Independent|accessdate=28 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Tomlinson|first1=Abby|title=I'll always be a Milifan. Ed was the best prime minister we never had|url=
==History==
The Millifandom hashtag began [[trending topic|trending]] on Twitter in late April 2015, as the result of a Twitter campaign led by a 17-year-old user then calling herself simply 'Abby'. Tomlinson has described the campaign as "a movement against the distorted media portrayal of Ed," and claimed that she "started the #millifandom campaign to show how powerful young people are." Tomlinson gained 12,000 followers on Twitter as a result.<ref name=Guardian>{{cite news|last1=Ratcliffe|first1=Rebecca|title=Milifandom soars with Twitter backing for Labour leader Ed Miliband|url=
The hashtag has been used both to express affection for Miliband, and support for Labour policies. Members of the Milifandom, known as 'Milifans,' began referring to Miliband as '[[wikt:bae#English|Milibae]]' and tweeting photos of him with rings of flowers photoshopped onto his head. Photo edits in which Miliband's face was superimposed onto pictures of celebrities were spread on the hashtag, many originating from an account called "cooledmiliband."<ref name=BBC/><ref name= Independent>{{cite news|last1=Nianias|first1=Helen|title=Ed Miliband inspires One Direction-style teenage crushes as 'Milifandom' takes off|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/ed-miliband-inspires-one-directionstyle-teenage-crushes-as-milifandom-takes-off-10194408.html?origin=internalSearch|accessdate=2 May 2015|work=[[The Independent]]|date=22 April 2015}}</ref> Users of the hashtag have also spread the Labour party's manifesto and policies.<ref name=TelWomen>{{cite news|last1=Sanghani|first1=Radhika|title=#Milifandom: Ed Miliband's teen groupies are not a joke|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-politics/11554357/Milifandom-Labour-leader-Ed-Milibands-teen-groupies-are-not-joking.html|accessdate=5 May 2015|date= 22 April 2015|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]}}</ref>
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==Responses==
Milifandom has been compared in the press to teenage fandoms surrounding popular musicians such as [[Justin Bieber]] and [[One Direction]].<ref name= Independent/><ref name=SMH/> Writing for ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' Radhika Sanghani argued that while Milifandom may have started as an ironic joke for some Twitter users, it had developed into a genuine display of affection for Miliband that distinguished itself from other fandoms through its support for his "80-page manifesto."<ref name= TelWomen/> Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett of ''[[The Guardian]]'' claimed that Milifandom represented the "[[Internet meme|"meme-ification" of politics]]," and its members were making the statement that "I am progressive and I follow politics with a keen sense of irony. And I fancy Ed Miliband."<ref name=GuardOP>{{cite news|last1=Cosslett|first1=Rhiannon Lucy|title=Hooray for the Milifans. They can change the world for the better|url=
Miliband has responded positively to the fandom, sending thanks to Tomlinson over Twitter and calling her on the phone.<ref name=SMH/> He stated on the [[Jeremy Vine]] Show that "It's very nice of those people who have joined this thing to be being nice about me, but I think they're making a serious point about young people in our politics as well."<ref name=Cameronettes>{{cite news|last1=Wilkinson|first1=Michael|title=Never mind #milifandom, meet the #cameronettes who can't get enough of David Cameron|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cameron/11554249/Never-mind-milifandom-meet-the-cameronettes-who-cant-get-enough-of-David-Cameron.html|accessdate=5 May 2015|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|date=22 April 2015}}</ref> Miliband's wife [[Justine Thornton]] is reported to have "rolled her eyes," upon being informed of the fandom's existence. Miliband claims that "she thinks it might be a case of mistaken identity."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Murphy|first1=Joe|title=Ed Miliband: I told Justine about Milifandom and she rolled her eyes|url=http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/ed-miliband-i-told-justine-about-milifandom-and-she-rolled-her-eyes-10206577.html|accessdate=5 May 2015|work=[[London Evening Standard]]|date=27 April 2015}}</ref>
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