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A new political landscape for London sets in

Karl MercerBBC London political editor
News imageBBC A map of London with boroughs represented in red, blue, turquoise, blue and greyBBC
On Thursday 21 of London's 32 boroughs were run by Labour, but it now looks very different

The red blanket that had cloaked London's councils is no more.

The capital, which on Thursday had 21 of is 32 boroughs run by Labour, looks very different today.

For the first time, the capital got a directly elected Green mayor - Zoë Garbett - winning in the former Labour stronghold of Hackney.

Hours later another one, a former Labour councillor, Liam Shrivastava became Lewisham's Green mayor.

For the first time the Greens have won two councils in London, taking Waltham Forest and Hackney from Labour.

For the first time the capital has a Reform UK council - after winning in Havering, the party's leader Nigel Farage declared: "It's under new management."

News imagePA Media Zoë Garbett, left, seen from side view, laughs, smiles and does a high hand-shake with Jack Zack Polanski as they celebrate her mayoral win. She has short hair which is dark apart from a pink fringe and wears a white blouse and red skirt. He wears dark suit and white shirt.PA Media
Zoë Garbett is the Green Party's first borough mayor, elected in Hackney

More splashes of blue on the map too with the Conservatives taking back control of Westminster which they lost to Labour in 2022.

They came close too in Wandsworth - becoming the largest party, not quite winning a majority, but doing enough to deprive Labour of the control they won four years ago.

They also managed to hold off a Reform UK challenge in Bexley and Bromley. "I'm very proud of how we have done," said leader Kemi Badenoch.

Aspire looks set to continue its hold on Tower Hamlets, winning the mayoralty there - putting the finishing touches to the new palette of colours in London's political landscape.

And it is not a pretty picture for Labour.

While they may not have lost as big a proportion of their seats as they did in the rest of England and Wales, these results in the capital cannot be glossed over.

Half the party's membership are in the capital and one in seven of its MPs are here.

London has six million people eligible to vote. The prime minister called it a "tough" night. That's putting it mildly.

There are challenges on the left from the Greens, on the right from Reform UK.

Challenges too in persuading Londoners that Keir Starmer understands their concerns and can address them.

Labour did hold on to Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Brent and Hounslow, but their worst fears were realised in a number of inner London boroughs.

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