Sadiq Khan today urged Londoners “to choose hope over fear” when they elect a new Mayor on Thursday.
At the end of his eight month campaign to succeed Boris Johnson, Mr Khan returned to the Southbank centre, where his selection as Labour’s candidate was first announced last September, and promised to be “a Mayor for all Londoners” if elected.
The final days of the campaign have seen renewed efforts by Khan’s Tory rival, Zac Goldsmith, to draw attention to the “radical” and “extremist” views held by people who have attended events at which the Labour mayoral hopeful also appeared.
Mr Khan has previously said that in each instance he was attending as either as a human rights lawyer or as a local MP and that he had no prior knowledge or control over who else was invited.
The frontrunner to become London’s third directly elected mayor has also spoken about how his liberal voting record, including his back for same-sex marriage, saw seen him criticised by some Muslims.
However the issue of Mr Khan’s fellow speakers has continued to dominate much of the media’s coverage of the election, with policy and the candidates’ ability to fund their pledges being pushed into the background.
Today Mr Khan promised to use the mayoralty “to ensure that all Londoners get the opportunities that our city gave to me and my family” and repeated his pledge to deliver thousands of “affordable” new homes each year.
Londoners will elect a new Mayor and the 25 members of the London Assembly on May 5th. Candidates for Mayor include Conservative Zac Goldsmith, Labour’s Sadiq Khan, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon, the Green party’s Sian Berry and UKIP’s Peter Whittle.
