[1] In New South Wales, the Soft Left traces its roots to the supporters of Peter Baldwin, who led the Steering Committee (previous name for the New South Wales Socialist Left) during its rise in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
[2] It was the dominant group on the Steering Committee until March 1989, when the Soft Left's John Faulkner was succeeded by the Hard Left's Anthony Albanese in an internal faction ballot for the leading position of Assistant General Secretary of the New South Wales Labor Party.
[citation needed] Strategically, it has advocated a continuation of the Baldwinite bottom-up strategy of mobilising the grassroots membership to win party positions.
[2] The large Australian trade union, United Voice supported the Soft Left until 2010.
The Soft Left continues to enjoy the support of the majority of Labor Party members in Western Sydney and Newcastle.