Sadiq Khan: London’s first Muslim mayor

Sadiq Khan is London’s third elected mayor since the role was created in 2000. Of those who’ve faced the mammoth task of running this city, he’s the only one to have been elected three times.

Khan grew up in Earlsfield, south-west London. After a decade as a lawyer, he made the jump to politics, serving his local area as Tooting’s Member of Parliament (MP).

As London mayor, he’s passionately campaigned to clean up the city’s air. But his three terms have included challenges: the Covid-19 pandemic, protests over the expanded Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) and the regular Islamophobic abuse he’s received.

Khan was born in 1970 and grew up with his seven siblings on the Henry Prince Estate in Earlsfield, south-west London.

His parents moved to London from Pakistan shortly before he was born. Khan has talked proudly about his working-class background, which influenced his support for trade unions. His mother worked at home sewing clothing, while his dad drove a London bus.

Khan studied law at the University of North London and qualified as a solicitor in 1994.

He specialised in human rights, taking on many legal aid cases for those who couldn’t afford to pay lawyer’s fees. In some cases he challenged the government and police.

Khan served as a local councillor in Wandsworth while he was practising as a lawyer. In 2005, he was elected as the Labour MP for Tooting in south London, a post he held for three terms.

In 2010, Khan ran Ed Milliband’s successful campaign to become the leader of the Labour party. Khan was then given shadow cabinet positions to challenge the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government on justice and political reform.

After the Labour party lost the 2015 general election, Khan decided to run for Mayor of London.

He was elected in 2016, beating the Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith. During the campaign, the Conservatives were accused of using ‘dog-whistle’ tactics to link Khan with Islamist extremism. Khan described his election as a win for “hope over fear and unity over division”.

Khan’s election as London’s first Muslim mayor was a sign of progress. But it has also highlighted racist and Islamophobic attitudes in Britain and around the world.

Khan has regularly received racist abuse on social media during his time as mayor.

In 2017, the situation was escalated by US president Donald Trump’s personal attacks on Khan. That year, Trump temporarily banned travel into the US from several Muslim-majority countries. Khan spoke out against the ban.

Trump responded with false accusations about Khan’s record on crime and terrorism. This encouraged more racist abuse.

In 2018, Khan allowed an inflatable showing Trump as a screaming baby to be flown in London as part of a protest against the president’s visit to the city. The ‘Trump baby blimp’ is now part of our collection.

With Khan’s election as Mayor of London in May 2016, the city switched from Conservative leadership under Boris Johnson to Labour.

The timing was significant. Just a month later, in June 2016, a slim majority of British voters chose to leave the European Union in the Brexit referendum.

Khan, along with the majority of Labour MPs, campaigned to remain in the EU – aligning them with 60% of London voters.

In Khan’s first two terms, between 2016 and 2024, the national government was Conservative. In London however, Labour dominated parliamentary elections. In the general elections of 2017, 2019 and 2024, the party won the majority of the city’s seats, and far more than any other party.

In May 2024, Khan was re-elected to serve as mayor for another four years. For his third term, Khan’s leadership of the capital was mirrored in Westminster. In July 2024, Labour won the general election, forming a national government with a large majority.

Khan’s time as mayor has seen London rocked by historic events, including the Covid-19 pandemic, Grenfell Tower fire and the Black Lives Matter protests. He’s tried to confront the city’s housing crisis and backed the project to build the Silvertown Tunnel.

One of his most discussed policies has been his investment in reducing air pollution. In 2019, roughly 4,000 Londoners died due to toxic air. Road vehicles are the main cause of London’s air pollution, which can cause asthma, cancer and lung disease.

In 2023, Khan expanded London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to the city’s outer boroughs, charging drivers of older, more polluting vehicles a daily fee for driving in the zone.

Suburban areas where people rely more on private transport were particularly affected, leading to a number of street protests.

Khan has also extended London’s cycling infrastructure by introducing more separate cycle lanes and low traffic neighbourhoods.