Ken Livingstone will be seeking a third term as Mayor of London in 2008. According to today’s Telegraph, Oxfordshire MP Boris Johnson will seek the Tory nomination. Simon Hughes, the Lib Dem candidate in 2004, is thought unlikely to run again. (See his comments reported here at MayorWatch.)
So, if the 2008 London Mayoral election is set to become dominated by the Ken & Boris show – a media-circus in the making – who do you think will be best placed to fight the Lib Dem corner?
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38 Comments
Sandy Totsvig.
We have to stop trying to shoe-horn poor Sandi Toksvig in to every vacancy going. I say that the only option open to us is a stunt about how unaccountable the mayor is – let’s put up a bloke in a Stalin mask. That’ll go down well in all social groups… won’t it?
If my friends felt I should allow my name to be put forward…
Would anyone like a jellied eel?
I think Ken v Charles Kennedy V Boris would make for a very interesting battle and I’m sure turnout would be up.
Chris Huhne.
It’s really not even worth us bothering. An important office, of course, but in a Ken v Boris campaign we will be even more sidelined than usual. I think a token candidate might be in order. Who could be bothered wasting their political capital on a hiding-to-nothing such as this?
Preferably somone with some substance so that we can contrast some seriousness with the celebrities.
Lynne Featherstone?
A serious politician with gravitas to take on a trot and a buffoon.
I know Henley is on the Thames but since when has it been in London? The Tories really must be desperate for a candidate.
Pink Dog
I like the Stalin mask idea
How about Guido Fawkes? As he doesn’t want to reveal his face, he could use a similar mask that was used in the movie “V for Vendetta”. He could then be easily replaced, if he got sick during the campaign, as nobody would know who’s under the mask.
How about Charles Anglin?
Anyone but Sally Hamwee.
Sally Hamwee is at least one of the few people mentioned so far who is capable of doing the job.
How many large organisations has Boris Johnson ever run? He didn’t even run the Spectator (not the business side of it).
Don’t waste Chris Huhne on the Mayoralty.
Find someone who is a proven manager and has a record of political work in London.
Polly Toynbee.
Not sure I agree with Angus Huck. It’s not just a matter of managerial skills. It’s charisma and personality that is needed to do well in the campaign – it’s only if you have bags of that and can win that you have to worry about your administrative skills.
I would have thought that the obvious candidate would be Ming since he will be out of a job by the year end,however,his scottishness might be an issue.
Our candidate needs to be someone who’s realistic about the role: we don’t need someone managerialist who could do the job well (sorry Sally) nor someone who thinks name recognition alone could carry them to victory (sorry Simon).
We need someone who brings something special to their candidature and/or whose candidature says something about us as a party.
Shami Chakrabati would be ideal if she were willing, but pretty sure she is not party political and wouldn’t do it.
I hear good things about Chamali Fernando …
Brian Paddick?
Shami Chakrabarti would be ideal if she were willing, but pretty sure she is not party political and wouldn’t do it.
What a relief!
Paddick would be an interesting choice, if he’s permitted to stand (is he retiring from the police force?)
Paddick is clearly an excellent choice.
Shami would be fantastic; I’m afraid I can’t believe a Lib Dem member is so anti-Liberty as Laurence. Bizarre. But as someone said above, she probably thinks she’s achieving more in Liberty than she would as mayor (or, much more plausibly, as a Liberal MP).
How would Shami oppose Ken Livingstone, who has always been a keen supporter of civil liberties?
So basically what you’re all saying is that we’ve got no one half decent who will realistically stand in London?
No, I think Lynne Featherstone is really decent, and she might stand in London.
“So basically what you’re all saying is that we’ve got no one half descent who will realistically stand in London?”
How keen a supporter of civil liberties is Ken really?
Did he not invite to London the odious Sheikh Al-Qaradawi, who favours the death penalty for gays and apostates, and is an advocate of domestic violence?
Sorry! I copied the wrong quote!
Richard, I’m not anti-Liberty. (Is anyone?) I just refuse to buy into the prevailing libertarian paranoia which would have us believe that all of our “hard won freedoms” are under attack. To my mind, we enjoy tremendous liberty as a nation and we’re not about to lose it any time soon.
But that’s by the way, because the problem with Shami Chakrabarti from an electoral viewpoint is simply that she is the most annoying person in Britain.
Laurence, it may be self-evident to you that this is the case, but I am sure I am not the only one who finds your opinion completely unfathomable. Even if you do not agree with her, how is she annoying?
Paddy Ashdown?
Why is Shami annoying? I guess it’s hard to explain if you can’t already see it. Just think: head girl, teacher’s pet, Little Miss Goody Two-Shoes, the Mother Teresa of British politics, that sort of thing. An unbelievably sanctimonious and tiresome lady.
Does that help?
Be serious – do we have enough to separate us from one (or the other)? Especially if we can’t conme up with a half-decent name that might conceivably stand.
I suspect that LDs in London are a lot closer to Ken than to Boris. be honest, back Ken with one or two key concessions that you want out of him for his support.
Spend the rest of the time worrying about yet another example of the paucity of decent LD candidiates for big jobs.
Is “John E” some kind of a Labour Grant Shapps, who is here for some astroturfing? Personally I don’t feel closer to the Left wing of the Labour party than to some moderate Tories. As for Boris, he’s a clown, but if I really had to choose between him and Ken, I think I would pick Boris. But luckily I don’t have to choose between them, as I’m sure that there will be a Lib Dem candidate.
I heard from somewhere (just a rumour you understand) that we may be puttng forward the ex-metropolitan police chief for Brixton.Paddy could also do great job though
Also here
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-4941.html
How about Ivan Massow? Seriously.