When Is The Next London Mayoral Election

So, you’re standing at a bus stop in the drizzle, watching a man argue with a pigeon about bus routes, and you think: “When on earth is the next London mayoral election?” Excellent question, my friend. You’ve come to the right café table. Let’s dig into the glorious, chaotic sausage-fest that is London politics.

The Short Answer (For Those Who Hate Waiting)

The last one was in May 2024, which means Sadiq Khan got to keep his job for another four years. So, the next London mayoral election will be in May 2028. Yes, mark your calendar with a very large, indelible ink smiley face.

That’s right, you’ve got nearly four whole years to recover from the last round of tube-station leafleters and “Boris-is-not-on-the-ballot-this-time” confusion. In political terms, that’s an eternity. In London terms, that’s roughly 1,460 separate TfL delays.

But Wait, Could It Happen Sooner?

Ah, you’re thinking like a proper cynic. Could the Mayor resign? Could he be, say, abducted by aliens or decide to open a pie shop in Margate? Technically, yes. If the Mayor resigns or dies, a by-election happens within 35 to 45 days. But come on—who resigns from this job?

This is the only role in the UK where you get to ban adverts for junk food, declare a “climate emergency” twice, and still get blamed for the Northern Line being slow. Sadiq Khan seems to love it. Let's be real: the only way we get an early election is if a zombie apocalypse starts at Bank station. And even then, the zombie would probably run on a platform of “free fare zones.”

Why Does It Take So Long to Wait for an Election?

London mayors serve four-year terms, which is the standard human endurance limit for dealing with ULEZ extensions and low-traffic neighbourhood debates. It’s not like the US presidential circus, where campaigns start before the last one ends. Here, we’re polite. We wait.

Except for the campaigning, which starts about two years early anyway. By 2027, you’ll already see a man dressed as a giant bicycle handing out flyers near Oxford Circus. It’s the law. The law of being slightly annoying in a jolly way.

London Mayoral Election 2025 – Sadiq Khan London Mayor – AGDOB

The Surprising Fact That Will Make You Snort Your Coffee

Here’s a kicker: the first London mayoral election in 2000 was won by Ken Livingstone—who ran as an independent after Labour rejected him. And do you know how many people turned up to vote? 34%. That’s it. More people decided to finish their takeaway than to pick the leader of 9 million people.

Also, until 2022, you could vote at 18 but not serve as Mayor until 21—because London decided your teenage TikTok dance phase wasn’t a proper qualification to control Transport for London. That rule’s gone now, but still—imagine a 19-year-old Mayor trying to negotiate with Sadiq Khan about the Bakerloo line extension. “Bro, just add a tunnel. It’s like a subway, innit?”

Who’s Going to Win in 2028? (Pure Speculation With a Side of Sarcasm)

Right now? It’s like trying to predict the weather in London. You know it’s going to rain on your parade, but you don’t know which parade. Sadiq Khan will likely run again. He’s like a beloved, slightly damp carpet that everyone’s used to. The Tories will almost certainly parachute in a fresh-faced, bus-tour-friendly candidate who promises to “cut the congestion charge” and then immediately gets stuck in traffic on the A406.

Lib Dems? They’ll run someone named “Dr. Susan Something-Wilson” who promises to plant trees on every roundabout. The Greens will demand that we turn the entire M25 into a bike path. And Count Binface will definitely be there, promising to make “Uber Eats deliver by pogo stick.” Because obviously. That’s democracy, baby.

London Mayoral Election 2024: Sadiq Khan wins historic third term as

How to Survive the Wait (A Londoner’s Guide)

First, ignore all “breaking news” about early elections on Twitter. It’s usually a bot or a man in a pub who’s had one too many pints of “I really should go home.”

Second, get involved in the small stuff. Borough council elections happen every four years too, usually in-between Mayoral ones. That’s where they decide if your local park gets a new slide or a statue of a traffic cone. It matters. But it’s not as fun as the mayoral drama.

Finally, enjoy the peace. For the next three years and change, you won’t have a candidate knocking on your door asking if you “support the night tube while also supporting the 12:30pm curfew.” Ahhhh. Savor it.

The Bottom Line

The next London mayoral election is May 2028. The exact date will be announced in late 2027. In the meantime, the Mayor will continue to argue about buses, the pigeons will keep winning, and we’ll all pretend we know what “ULEZ” stands for. (Reminder: It’s Ultra Low Emission Zone. But also a fancy word for “don’t drive your 1998 Fiat Punto through Camden.”)

Now, go enjoy your flat white. And don't worry—by the time 2028 rolls around, you’ll have forgotten you ever asked this question. Until the leaflets arrive again. They always arrive.