Chris Carter went into a meeting of Labour's national council tonight saying he was ready to defend himself and fight to stay in the party.
The Te Atatu MP was thrown out of Labour's caucus after sending an anonymous letter to the media on July 29, which said a coup was planned against leader Phil Goff because he couldn't win next year's election.
Now he is facing the council, which will decide whether he should be suspended or expelled from the party.
Mr Carter has accepted his political future with the party is over, and will not stand for it again.
In Parliament he is considered to be an independent MP.
But he said tonight he was still committed to the Labour Party and he had a good record which he was going to tell the council about.
"I am looking forward to having a robust discussion about why I should still remain a member of the Labour Party," he said.
"I hope that I will retain my membership."
Asked directly whether he thought he would, Mr Carter replied "who knows?"
Mr Carter has previously said he considers his problem is with Mr Goff, not the party, and that it should consider his record of more than 20 years when it considers what to do about his behaviour.
He has also argued that others have committed similar infringements without being severely punished by the party.
The council, which is a separate organisation from the caucus, will weigh up his years of services, his local electorate work and his achievements alongside his attempt to undermine Mr Goff.
But Mr Carter is still criticising Mr Goff, and told NZPA on Friday he had failed to show leadership over the cash for leave issue, GST and his handling of Paul Henry's gaffe over the governor-general.
