Sadiq Khan Should Be The Next Labour Leader, Poll Of UK Voters Finds

Sadiq Khan should be leader of the Labour Party if Jeremy Corbyn decided to step down, a poll of British voters has found.

The BMG poll, commissioned by HuffPost UK, also found a staggering 57% thought no high-profile Labour figure could fill Corbyn’s shoes.

Of the candidates picked out, most (12%) of the 1,500 sample thought the Mayor of London was the best candidate for the job, while the second most popular figure was Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.

Sadiq Khan: London mayor who took on Trump won't flinch in fight with Uber

Sadiq Khan, the first Muslim mayor of a western capital city, is no stranger to making powerful enemies, and few come as mighty and ill-tempered as Donald Trump. The mayor of London and the US president have clashed several times – spats that appeared engineered by Trump to show who’s boss. Khan has not flinched, chastising and ridiculing Trump with apparent relish.

News that the 46-year-old son of a Pakistani bus driver was taking on Uber would have surprised few seasoned Khan-watchers. His 15 months as mayor of a London navigating one of the most tumultuous periods of its modern history have left him battle-hardened rather than bowed.

No left turn for London's new mayor

Everyone on the left is bound to welcome Sadiq Khan's clear victory over Tory Zac Goldsmith to become London's new mayor in succession to Boris Johnson. Khan took 44 per cent of the vote to Goldsmith's 35 per cent, ending eight years of Tory rule at city hall.

The population of London is one of the most ethnically diverse in the world, with 44 per cent of the city's 8.6 million people from minority backgrounds. The election of a Muslim bus-driver's son who grew up on a council estate as mayor is fitting testimony to that, and also a welcome riposte to the racist campaign waged by the Tories.