Former Labour politician Lutfur Rahman re-elected mayor of Tower Hamlets

Lutfur Rahman, the controversial local government leader who formed a new party called Aspire after leaving Labour, has won re-election as the executive mayor of Tower Hamlets at the heart of East London.

Nine candidates contested the mayoral race for the London borough, including incumbent.

Lutfur retained his position, securing 38.8 percent of the vote.

The position of mayor of Tower Hamlets became an executive role with political powers in 2010, after previously being largely ceremonial.

Lutfur was removed from office in 2015 after a specialist court found him guilty of vote-rigging, vote-buying, and religious intimidation, according to a report by The Guardian.

However, the police and the Crown Prosecution Service later decided there was insufficient evidence to pursue a criminal prosecution, The Guardian reported.

Lutfur first served as the Labour leader of Tower Hamlets Council between 2008 and 2010 before contesting the mayoral election as an independent candidate in 2010, the report said.

He secured a second term in 2014 under the banner of a newly formed party, Tower Hamlets First.

He was removed from office in April 2015 after being found guilty by a civil election court, rather than through a criminal proceeding, the report said.

In the 2022 election, Lutfor secured a comeback.

Voters in Tower Hamlets also elected 45 councillors to the Tower Hamlets London Borough Council during the local elections.

Polling closed at 10pm on Thursday, May 7, with vote counting taking place on Friday, May 8.