Sadiq Khan is fighting to be re-elected as Mayor of London.
Voters took to the polls on Thursday May 2 to cast their ballot for the next mayor of London, with Khan battling 12 other candidates to secure a third term in office.
Other challengers for mayorship the Conservative Susan Hall, the Greens’ Zoe Garbett, Lib Dem Rob Blackie, and of course, Count Binface.
The results of the contest are expected to be announced late afternoon on Saturday May 4.
But what is the history of the role and how does the election work?
How is the Mayor of London elected?
Mayors are elected on a first-come, first-served basis. This means that the candidate who receives the most votes wins the election.
The Mayor is the chief executive of Greater London and has powers over housing, transport, the environment, planning, policing and the economy.
Due to the large number of votes in the London election, the results will be counted electronically.
Vote counting begins after polling stations close on Election Day.
Who elects the Mayor of London?
The people who live in the 32 London boroughs that make up the Greater London Authority.
This includes the inner London boroughs: Camden, Greenwich, Hackney, City of London, Hammersmith and Fulham, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Wandsworth and Westminster.
The outer London boroughs: Barking, Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Greenwich, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kingston upon Thames, Merton, Redbridge, Richmond upon Thames, Sutton and Waltham Forest.
The Mayor of London is directly elected. However, some mayors are appointed by fellow politicians.
So you stand for election as a local councilor, for example, and are elected to the mayor’s office by other members of the local council.
How many times can a mayor be elected?
There is generally no limit to the number of terms a mayor can serve, as long as the mayor continues to have popular support and is willing to stand for election.
Sadiq Khan is currently running for his third term in an unprecedented mayoral election.
How long is the term of office for the Mayor of London?
Once elected as Mayor of London, the term of office is set at four years.
When was Boris Johnson elected Mayor of London?
Boris Johnson served as Mayor of London for his eight years from 2008 until 2016.
He resigned as a councilor for Henry to fight Labor’s Ken Livingstone for the top job at City Hall.
Johnson was Mayor when London hosted the Olympics in 2012 and during the 2011 riots, and oversaw the introduction of a bike-sharing system, a new Routemaster bus route and the Thames Cable Car.
He was criticised for repeatedly campaigning for the doomed Garden Bridge project, which was never built but cost £43 million.
Who was the first elected Mayor of London?
The first person ever to be elected Mayor’s of London was Ken Livingstone.
The role was created after former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair’s 1997 election manifesto included a promise for a referendum on whether the city should have a directly elected Mayor.
In 1998, around 72% of Londoners voted for a Mayor.
Livingstone had previously been leader of the Greater London Council, but was elected as an independent in 2000 after Prime Minister Blair did not want him as a candidate for the public office. He ran as a Labour candidate in 2004 and was re-elected.
Dubbed ‘Red Ken’, Livingstone was on the left of his party and introduced the congestion charge, the Oyster card system and articulated buses.
He was also mayor during the 2005 terror attacks on the city and was a key figure in London winning the bid for the 2012 London Olympics.
