Original sentence: Reid is an "ardent Blairite" in the eyes of many and he was thus considered to be a frontrunner in the 2007 Labour Party leadership contest if the Blairites decided to run against Brown
Edited sentence: Reid is an "ardent Blairite" in the eyes of many and, as it is public knowledge that Reid and Gordon Brown detest each other, he was thus considered to be a frontrunner in the 2007 Labour Party leadership contest if the Blairites decided to run against Brown