Labour leader Sadiq Khan’s election as mayor of London is a significant moment in the history of Western democracy that does much credit to the voters of the city. Despite being pitted against a rival candidate who constantly attempted to remind voters about his religion and foreign origins, Khan won a fairly comfortable victory with 57 per cent of the votes polled. Voters have clearly expressed their disdain for the Conservative Party tactics that sought to link Khan to Muslim hardliners in England, and prey upon the citizens’ fears of Islamic terror groups by implicitly raising questions about London’s security under such a man. Khan kept his cool throughout the campaign, reiterating his focus on affordable housing and transportation, and dismissing the Conservative slander campaign with the contempt it deserved.
With right-wing politicians peddling Islamophobia as a political strategy to distinguish themselves from liberals and Left parties, the choice made by Londoners reveals why the West continues to remain the preferred destination for immigrants. Few other places in the world have provided an enabling environment for immigrants to settle down, integrate culturally, and economically prosper as the Western nations like United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom have provided. So it is not entirely surprising that Khan, hailing from working class origins, as opposed to his rival, Zac Goldsmith, the son of a billionaire financier, was able to convince Londoners that he best represented their interests. Besides scoring a famous victory, there are signs emerging that Khan could go on to play a central role in British and Labour Party politics.
The London mayor’s post is the most important direct election in the UK, where all the functionaries of national government are elected through parliamentary polls. Moreover, Labour is beset with dissensions over ideological and programmatic approaches. Khan asserted his importance to Labour by noting that the party last won the mayoral election in 2004 and a general election in 2005. Further, he did not shy away from criticising Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. In doing so, he has positioned himself as a counterweight to Corbyn, who has adopted pronounced Leftist and anti-war approaches, leaving the party torn between the quest for winnability and ideological purity. In contrast, Khan has stressed that winning elections were key to changing people’s lives for the better.
In his first public remarks after the results, Khan said: “Labour has to be a big tent that appeals to everyone — not just its own activists... Just like in London, so-called natural Labour voters alone will never be enough to win a general election. We must be able to persuade people who previously voted Conservative that Labour can be trusted with the economy and security as well as improving public services and creating a fairer society,” While Corbyn has focussed on economic inequality and increasing public investment, Khan has preferred to adopt a middle path. While most of the proposed housing projects are in the luxury segment, Khan has promised to ensure that 50 per cent of all new housing projects will be in the affordable segment. Unlike Corbyn, who has protested rail and bus fare hikes, Khan believes that the fares are necessary to sustain the quality of service. It is far too early to predict the future trajectory of Khan’s political career. But in beating back the buoyant Conservative Party, which in Khan’s words borrowed tactics from Donald Trump’s “play-book”, London has reiterated that majoritarianism can have no role in a secular democracy.
