Sadıq Khan.
Throughout this year, we’ve had two big political events that have been waiting for the democracy to steer the future. One is the upcoming EU referendum and the other was undoubtely, the Mayoral elections of London. Labour’s Sadiq Khan has been elected mayor of London after much rancoral rivalry with with the Tory nominee Zac Goldsmith. Even before Khan’s victory was formally announced many senior Tories criticised Goldsmith for his tactics, which involved trying to associate Khan with extremism by concentrating on Islamists he has shared platforms with in the past. Khan, the Muslim son of an immigrant bus driver who has denounced Islamist extremism, used his victory speech to praise London for resisting Goldsmith’s scaremongering. He said:
“This election was not without controversy and I’m so proud that London has today chosen hope over fear and unity over division. I hope that we will never be offered such a stark choice again. Fear does not make us safer, it only makes us weaker, and the politics of fear is simply not welcome in our city.” It is said that now
Khan slams Trump’s “ignorant” offer to him
Khan has become arguably the most powerful Muslim to hold elected office in Europe and his victory has made a global impact in the international media, including Donald Trump, a US president nominee known through his extensive Islamaphobic politics, had a U-turn by proposing to make him an ‘exception’ to his proposed Muslim entrance ban. Khan refused the offer, saying: “This isn’t just about me – it’s about my friends, my family and everyone who comes from a background similar to mine, anywhere in the world.
Khan’s campaign focused on bread-and-butter issues like the cost of housing and transportation. He drew strong support from labor unions and kept a careful distance from his party’s leader, Jeremy Corbyn, a socialist who has an ardent base among young voters but faces heavy resistance among fellow Labour lawmakers.
In the past week, the Labour Party was distracted by a dispute over anti-Semitism that led to the suspension of a lawmaker, Naseem Shah, and a former London mayor, Ken Livingstone.
Khan argued that, as an observant Muslim, he was well placed to tackle extremism. “I’m a Londoner, I’m European, I’m British, I’m English, I’m of Islamic faith, of Asian origin, of Pakistani heritage, a dad, a husband,” he said in a recent interview with The New York Times.
The fifth of eight children, Mr. Khan was born in Tooting, South London, to recent immigrants from Pakistan, and grew up in a public-housing project. His father drove a bus, and his mother was a seamstress.
