New Tory Mayor For London
Boris Johnson Defeats Ken Livingstone In London Mayoral Race
On secondary preference votes, Boris Johnson has been elected mayor of London. Critics however still remain to be convinced he is up to the task.
After a gruelling campaign against the Labour incumbent and his strongest opponent, Boris Johnson has defeated Ken Livingstone in the London mayoral election. The result was announced early this morning (May 3rd). See Livingstone's reaction here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7381594.stm
The Vote Count
Mr Johnson, the Conservative candidate for the post took 1,043,761 of the first preference votes compared to Mr Livingstone's 893,877. Voter turnout was higher than ever seen before, at 45% (BBC).
The "Celebrity Election"
The race for the mayoralty was considered a two horse one almost from the beginning; both Mr Livingstone and Mr Johnson counting themselves among the most well-known of British politicians, indeed Ken Livingstone at one point had to ask reporters to stop comparing the election to Celebrity Big Brother.
With his win, the Eton-educated Tory faces an extremely tough job in convincing the rest of London that he can actually govern. Critics have previously expressed their disbelief that Johnson could run a bath, let alone one of the world's most important cities, and the BBC's Nick Robinson recently revealed what he felt when Johnson originally decided to stand: "In truth, I didn't really take the idea seriously. Labour must now be rueing the fact that they too did not take Boris seriously until it was too late" (bbc.co.uk).
See Johnson's victory speech here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7381585.stm
Parts Of London Remain To Be Convinced
Most well known for his gaffes, his background and appearances on TV, Boris, under his campaign manager Lynton Crosby, spent almost all of the mayoral campaign remaking his image. Gone were the quips, Greek quotes (he studied Classics at Oxford) and bumbling sidesteps of major issues; real alternatives to the Livingstone administration were offered and in televised debates Johnson appeared much more sober and calculating.
Many, will still need convincing of his capability, one of whom is the Guardian's John Harris: "The UK's capital city is set to be run by a one-time opponent of the Kyoto treaty, apparently prone to racist outbursts, who also just happens to be a Wodehousian embodiment of the fact that nothing guarantees success like a very expensive education"
The Other Candidates
The Liberal Democrat Brian Paddick finished in third place with 236,685 first preference votes and Sian Berry of the Greens received 77,374. Both had urged supporters not to give their second preference vote to the Conservatives.
Worryingly, the far-right British National Party's Richard Barnbrook gained enough votes (69,000) to ensure him a seat on the London Assembly.
