Download Python for Linux

Most Linux distributions have Python installed. If you want a newer version, you can build from the source; sometimes RPMs are also available. See the individual releases for details.

You can also try ActivePython (not open source).

The IUS Community Project maintains recent versions of Python for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and CentOS. Installations are parallel installed next to stock versions of python therefore don't disrupt the functionality of critical python utilities on the system. Project development is on Launchpad.