The major parties have announced their shortlisted candidates for the London mayoral election in May 2016. Who are the runners and riders?
The major parties have announced their candidates for the London mayoral election in May. Who are they?
Conservatives
Conservatives
Andrew Boff: A member of the London Assembly and leader of the Conservative Group, Andrew Boff is an advocate of electoral reform who says he wants to "make London a more liveable place for families". He has stood unsuccessfully for mayor of Hackney and worked as an IT consultant.
Zac Goldsmith, son of the late billionaire Sir James Goldsmith, was educated at Eton and Cambridge Centre for Sixth-form Studies before becoming editor of the Ecologist magazine. He was elected MP for Richmond Park in 2010 and increased his majority in 2015 - a constituency which had previously been a Lib Dem stronghold. He is known for his involvement in environmental issues, particularly his vocal opposition to Heathrow expansion. In 2012 he vowed to stand down as an MP if the government backed it. He has also been a leading campaigner on introducing greater powers for constituents to recall their MPs - which the government legislated for in 2014, although not entirely to Mr Goldsmith's satisfaction.
Zac Goldsmith: The MP for Richmond Park decided to stand for the mayoralty after getting the approval of constituents in a referendum. He is known for his opposition to a third runway at Heathrow and as a former editor of Ecologist magazine. Some members of the Green Party have urged voters to consider him for their second-preference votes. SELECTED
In that spirit, he held a referendum in his constituency to seek voters' permission to stand for mayor. They duly gave it, and he pledged to fight for a "safer, greener, happier, more prosperous, united city". Mr Goldsmith is hoping to continue in the tradition of Boris Johnson, pledging not to raise the mayor-controlled element of council tax at the same time as giving Transport for London the funding it says it needs to upgrade the Tube. He says he would ensure 50,000 new homes are being built every year in London by 2020 but has also vowed to protect greenbelt land.
Stephen Greenhalgh: The deputy mayor for policing was previously a councillor for Hammersmith and Fulham. He reduced council tax five times during his leadership of the council, and has made cutting transport fares a key part of his mayoral bid.
Syed Kamall: An MEP since 2005, he is currently the leader of the Conservative Party in the European Parliament. He was an adviser to businesses on international strategy before becoming an MEP. Announcing his decision to stand, he paid tribute to his immigrant parents and said he wanted to ensure everyone benefited from London's prosperity.
Labour
Labour
Diane Abbott: The veteran MP has represented Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987. Despite a brief stint in the shadow cabinet, she is perhaps better-known for attacking Labour Party policy. She has emphasised the need for property revenues to be devolved to London, but does not support proposals for a mansion tax.
Sadiq Khan, son of a bus driver, grew up on a south London housing estate. He attended a local comprehensive school before going to university and training as a lawyer and went on to become a human rights solicitor, representing claims of racism against the Met and helping to overturn a ban on Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan entering the UK. Shortly after being elected MP for Tooting in 2005 he became parliamentary private secretary to then Commons leader Jack Straw. He became one of the first British Muslims to sit on the frontbench when he took up a ministerial role in the Department for Communities and Local Government and later the Department for Transport. In opposition, he became shadow justice secretary and was involved in the campaign against coalition reforms to legal aid.
Dame Tessa Jowell: Before May, she had been the MP for Dulwich since 1992. A New Labour insider, she held ministerial positions under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and co-ordinated London's successful bid to host the 2012 Olympics. She has argued her track record in government would give her an advantage as mayor.
Announcing his decision to run as mayor, he called Mr Johnson a "red-carpet mayor" whereas he would "fight for all Londoners". Like his predecessor as Labour candidate, Ken Livingstone, he is promising to freeze Transport for London fares for four years. He has already clashed several times with Mr Goldsmith on the best way to improve the housing supply for London. His idea is to build a minimum of 80,000 homes a year and specify that 50% of new housing built on public land must be designated as affordable.
Sadiq Khan: The MP for Tooting and ally of former Labour leader Ed Miliband has been shadow justice secretary since 2010. He has come up with a host of pledges since he launched his candidacy, including quotas for black police officers in the Met and a ban on separate entrances for affordable housing. SELECTED
Greens
David Lammy: The former minister for universities grew up in his Tottenham constituency and worked for his predecessor Bernie Grant before rising to ministerial positions in the Labour Party. He has been vocal about the need for social cohesion and economic opportunity in the wake of the 2011 riots, which began in Tottenham.
Sian Berry is the only Green councillor on the Labour-run borough of Camden and also ran for City Hall in 2008. She worked in medical communications before becoming involved in politics, and was involved in local campaign group Alliance Against Urban 4x4s. In 2012, she helped organise the "Sack Boris" slogan with the Transport Salaried Staffs Association union, which was used on leaflets and specially printed Oyster card holders.
Gareth Thomas: The MP for Harrow West retained his marginal seat in May's election, and has spoken frequently about the need to reinvigorate outer London. He is also chair of the Labour-affiliated Co-operative Party and says he wants to bring values of "mutualism" to City Hall, as well as more powers to control private sector rents.
The Green Party will hope to match its 2012 record, when their then candidate Jenny Jones beat the Lib Dems into third place. Sian Berry has said that as mayor she would get rid of City Airport, establish a renters' union and introduce "flat fares" across London travel zones.
Christian Wolmar: Unique among the Labour hopefuls in never having been an MP, he is an established commentator and campaigner on transport improvements in the capital. He might be less well-known than other Labour contenders but he argues this puts him at an advantage because for him it is not a "career move".
Lib Dems
Liberal Democrats
Caroline Pidgeon is the only candidate currently sitting at City Hall, where she has been an Assembly Member since 2008. She is the party's leader at the London Assembly, and deputy chair of the London Assembly's Transport Committee and Police and Crime Committee.
Duwayne Brooks: Brooks was shortlisted by the party but has withdrawn to take up a role reviewing use of stop and search for Northamptonshire Police. He was a friend of Stephen Lawrence who was with the teenager when he was murdered in 1993. He was a Lib Dem councillor for Lewisham between 2009 and 2014, and has recently criticised the police's undercover policing methods.
Some clues to the uphill battle she faces were provided in her selection, when the only other shortlisted candidate withdrew his name in favour of taking a job with the police. Launching her campaign she said she wanted to tackle the barriers that make London "a city that serves the few, not the many". Her flagship policies include half-price fares for journeys starting before 07:30 and scrapping the Garden Bridge.
Caroline Pidgeon: The leader of the Lib Dems on the London Assembly is the only shortlisted candidate who will proceed in the race for City Hall, but members will still have to vote to nominate her as their candidate. She has led the Lib Dems' work on transport, policing and education in the capital. She launched her mayoral campaign from a nursery in Islington and is expected to make affordable childcare one of her key platforms. SELECTED
Green Party
Sian Berry: The Green councillor for Camden was the party's candidate for mayor back in 2008, and says she wants to find solutions to London's "inequality, dirty air, and a broken housing system". SELECTED
Jonathan Bartley: The director of Christian think tank Ekklesia stood for the Greens in Streatham in the general election. He said he wanted to work for a "credible alternative to austerity".
Tom Chance: A spokesperson for the Greens and head of office for the party at the London Assembly. He has concentrated on support for small businesses.
Benali Hamdache: The Greens' equalities spokesperson previously worked in the NHS on mental health research and pledged to prioritise fighting unemployment among ethnic minorities.
Rashid Nix: A former cameraman who stood for the Greens in Dulwich and West Norwood, he highlighted the need for civic engagement and higher voting turnout across London's communities.
Caroline Russell: The councillor for Islington and clean air campaigner said she wanted to show how London's economic prosperity could sit alongside a "green revolution".
UKIP
UKIP
Suzanne Evans: The UKIP deputy chair is also the party's work and pensions spokeswoman. She was a Conservative councillor in Merton before she defected to UKIP - and has previously acknowledged the difficulty the party faces in making inroads in London.
Peter Whittle, previously UKIP's culture spokesman, contested the seat of Eltham in the general election. He has written about what he argues is a shortage of right-leaning voices in the arts and has spoken extensively about the effects of migration from the EU on the capital, particularly in relation to housing.
Richard Hendron: A former police officer and criminal barrister who's also an LGBT activist in the party. He contested Brentford and Isleworth for UKIP in May.
He has also said he would support the use of stop and search to help tackle youth crime, an area which has been the focus of some tension between the Met and the government recently. UKIP placed sixth in the 2012 mayoral race but will hope to build on a better performance at the 2015 general election, when they came third in the popular vote.
Elizabeth Jones: The UKIP UKIP Lambeth and Croydon deputy chair and candidate for Dartford at the general election has said she will apply for the mayoral nomination, pledging to "protect and promote the best interests of Dartford".
Winston McKenzie: UKIP's former Commonwealth spokesman unsuccessfully sought the party nomination in 2012, and failed to be nominated as a Conservative in 2008. Announcing his intention to stand, he said he wanted to clean up London - but the party has yet to receive his application.
Peter Whittle: UKIP's culture spokesman contested the seat of Eltham in the general election. He has written extensively about what he argues is a shortage of right-leaning voices in the arts.
Others
Others
Siobhan Benita: The former civil servant ran for mayor in 2012 with high-profile backers including former Cabinet Secretary Lord O'Donnell. She was the only candidate to back a third runway at Heathrow.
The final list of candidates will not be known until 31 March, when nominations close.
George Galloway: After losing his Bradford West seat in May, the Respect Party's George Galloway announced he would stand for mayor, vowing to clamp down on what he described as the "social cleansing" of the city.
Others include:
Lindsey Garrett: A housing activist who, alongside Russell Brand, campaigned against the eviction of families from the New Era estate in Hoxton.
This page will be updated as candidates enter and leave the race.
