The Mayor of London plays a key role in running the capital, making decisions that affect 6.2 million voters.
With help from London Assembly members, the mayor oversees a £20billion budget funding transport, policing, housing and more.
The job, currently held by Sadiq Khan, and those of GLA members, are up for grabs on May 2, 2024.
But what does the mayor do, who are GLA members, and how does voting work?
What are we voting for on May 2?
Three elections are taking place on May 2. These are for the:
- Mayor of London
- Fourteen Members of the London Assembly representing fourteen areas
- Eleven Assembly Members representing the whole of London (London-wide Members)
Fourteen Members of the London Assembly representing fourteen areas
Eleven Assembly Members representing the whole of London (London-wide Members)
Fourteen of these members represent different areas of London called constituencies.
The other eleven are London-wide Members who represent the capital as a whole.
Voters will now decide who holds these important positions for the next four years.
The results will be announced at City Hall on Saturday, May 4.
What do the Mayor and London Assembly Members do?
The mayor has the top job, setting the vision for London, and deciding how the budget should be spent.
They have numerous powers including:
- Transport; responsibility for Transport for London (TfL) and set fares.
- Roads; powers over London roads, congestion charges and Ultra Low Emission Zones (ULEZ).
- Policing; setting how London is policed and appointing the Met Police Commissioner.
- Housing; deciding affordable housing targets and working towards them with local councils.
The mayor doesn’t have control over day-to-day services like social services, schools and rubbish collection which are run by local councils.
The NHS, the welfare state and national tax rates are controlled by central government.
The 25 London Assembly members exist to keep the mayor in check, scrutinising his decisions and suggesting changes to his policies.
Their main power lies in approving or rejecting the mayor’s £20bn budget plans.
They also work on committees which assess the mayor’s policies and check if they are working.
The mayor earns £154,963 per year. Assembly members get a £60,416 base salary but can earn more if they take on more responsibilities.
What is the voting system?
When voters head to the polls, they’ll see the different voting cards – one for each job role.
For the Mayor, the election will take place using a first-past-the-post system for the first time.
First-past-the-post is simple. Whichever Mayoral candidate gets the most votes, wins.
Constituency assembly members use a first-past-the-post system.
For the London-wide members, it will be a proportional representation system.
Previous mayoral elections were decided by the ‘supplementary vote’ where voters chose a first and second preference.
If no candidate got a majority (over 50 per cent) the top two candidates progressed to a second round where second-choice votes were included in the count.
Whoever got the most votes after those two rounds was declared the winner.
The government changed it to first-past-the-post in 2021 saying it would make it “easier for voters to express a clear choice”.
Who is running?
Candidates from all the main parties are running for the Mayor’s seat – plus some independents.
These include Labour’s Sadiq Khan, the Conservatives’ Susan Hall, Rob Blackie for the Lib Dems, Zoe Garbett for the Greens, and Howard Cox from Reform UK.
A host of independents and candidates from lesser known parties are running too.
The parties and independents are also standing in the different consistency seats and as London-wide members.
Find out who your local candidates are by visiting https://whocanivotefor.co.uk/elections and clicking ‘London Assembly elections’.