Sadiq Khan to run for third term as London mayor in 2024 election
Sadiq Khan will seek a third term as London mayor, after being selected as Labour’s candidate for the 2024 election.
Khan, who would be the first London mayor to win three elections if victorious in 2024, said it would be a “very tough election” and that “there’s still so much more to do.”
There have been rumours over the past two years that Khan would leave City Hall and come back to Westminster as the Labour party continues its national revival.
However, he has made a number of hints this year that he would instead run in another mayor of London election.
He said during the Labour party conference in September that he intended to run in the next election, which will be First Past the Post for the first time.
Khan today said: “I’m more determined than ever to use all the experience and knowledge I’ve gained as mayor to deliver on the issues that matter to Londoners, including supporting them through the cost-of-living crisis.
“It’s going to be a very tough election – the first using a first past the post voting system in London and the new voter ID rules that appear deliberately designed to disenfranchise minority communities and disproportionately affect Labour voters.”
The Conservatives have not chosen their candidate for the election after London Assembly member Shaun Bailey outperformed expectations in last year’s Covid-delayed contest.
Susan Hall, leader of the Tory caucus at City Hall, said: “London cannot afford another four years of Sadiq Khan.
“He has hit the poorest with punitive taxes, allowed the Met Police and London Fire Brigade to fall into special measures, and treated City Hall like his own personal PR machine.
“He has been a complete disaster as mayor and Londoners are rightly demanding change.”
Some of Khan’s signature policies during his six years in office have been the introduction of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez), a four-year freeze on Tube fares from 2016 and the introduction of the Violence Reduction Unit to combat gang crime.
He has been criticised for his handling of Transport for London’s (TfL) finances, which were already in a poor state before Covid-19 wiped out its revenue base and forced the transport body to rely on government handouts.