UK

Sadiq Khan elected London mayor for third term in further boost for Labour

Dramatic contest described as ‘close two-horse race’

London mayor Sadiq Khan and his wife, Saadiya, outside a polling station in London. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images
London mayor Sadiq Khan and his wife, Saadiya, outside a polling station in London. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images
Aletha Adu Political correspondent
Sat May 04 2024 - 16:52

Sadiq Khan has been elected mayor of London, winning a historic third term in a dramatic contest.

Mr Khan was announced as the winner over the Conservative candidate, Susan Hall, on Saturday afternoon.

The London mayor had described the battle as a “close two-horse race” when polls predicted he had a 25-point lead over his Tory rival, in what appeared to be an effort to encourage Labour loyalists and more apathetic Londoners to vote.

London Elects, which manages the mayoral and London assembly elections, said voter turnout was only 1.5 per cent down from 2021, at 40.5 per cent. Bexley and Bromley, led by the Conservatives, had the highest constituency turnout with 48 per cent.

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Mr Khan’s team became confident of winning the race after Labour took the North East and West Central constituencies from the Conservatives, more than two hours before the final result was declared.

The victory followed a tense Friday night, described by Labour sources as a “24-hour vacuum” because a pause on London mayoral counts enabled “excited” Tory activists to steal the social media space with rumours of Ms Hall posing a much greater threat, and polling predictions being “completely wrong”. It led some Labour insiders to believe the possibility that the candidates could be a few points apart.

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This mayoral election marked the first time voters were affected by changes to the electoral system that were introduced by the Conservatives. It has been made into a first-past-the-post contest and people are now required to show photo ID at polling stations, both measures that had been expected to harm Labour’s vote.

Senior Labour figures acknowledged the party’s stance on Gaza had weakened support in local elections in areas such as Oldham, Pendle and Bolton. It led some to accept early on Saturday that London voters could still send the party a message, despite Mr Khan’s call for an immediate ceasefire.

Activists warned that urban voters in London felt as though the party had “taken its core vote for granted” as Keir Starmer celebrated historic wins in Blackpool, Hartlepool and Thurrock on Friday.

A London Conservative MP criticised Ms Hall’s campaign for being too focused on channelling “anti-Khan” sentiment and failing to provide voters with a vision on what she would actually do.

The results came after more Labour victories in mayoral elections in the north of England on Saturday. Steve Rotherham won the Liverpool mayoral election, while Andy Burnham was re-elected in Greater Manchester and Tracy Brabin won a second term as mayor of West Yorkshire. – Guardian service