Two local council by-elections held on 18 July, two weeks after the general election, caused by the resignations of Elizabeth Booker and James Asset.
Beckton
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blossom Young | Labour | 597 | 38.7% |
| Shahzad Abbasi | Newham Ind Party | 476 | 30.9% |
| Justine Levoir | Green | 228 | 14.8% |
| Maria Clifford | Conservative | 144 | 9.3% |
| James Alan-Rumsby | Liberal Democrat | 96 | 6.2% |
Turnout was 13.55%.
Little Ilford
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akthural Alam | Labour | 884 | 39.0% |
| Tahir Mirza | Newham Ind Party | 738 | 32.5% |
| Akm Mahinbur Rahman | Liberal Democrat | 274 | 12.1% |
| Vijay Parthiban | Independent | 163 | 7.2% |
| Mohamadu Faheem | Conservative | 104 | 4.6% |
| Joe Oteng | Green | 103 | 4.6% |
Turnout was 18.3%.
In my post about the Forest Gate North and Maryland by-elections which were held on the same day as the general election I said that these contests would be more challenging for the incumbents. And in truth I expected Labour to lose Little Ilford. Tahir Mirza, the Newham Independent candidate, had just finished as runner-up to Stephen Timms in East Ham in the general election with around 7,000 votes. He lives in Little Ilford. Surely this was going to be his day. But for some reason his vote did not turn out and Labour’s ground operation ensured that theirs did. I am incredibly pleased for Akthural Alam, who showed tremendous courage putting himself forward again after losing Plaistow North last year.
The other surprise in Little Ilford was the respectable showing for the Liberal Democrat candidate. Having read his campaign material I have to wonder how much control the national party has over what gets published in their name. Mr Rahman appeared to be fishing for voters in the same pool as Tahir Mirza – overtly anti-Labour and pro-motorist. He also seems to have been asleep for the past two years, as he insisted that there was no opposition to Labour on the council.
In Beckton the excellent Blossom Young held off the Newham Independents in what can only be described as an appallingly low turnout contest. I know it was only two weeks after the general election, but 13.55% demonstrates a shocking level of disengagement by voters.
Hopefully these are the last by-elections in this council term and voters won’t be asked to turn out again until May 2026.
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