The Not Newham Independents

The Newham Independents Party is fielding a full slate of 66 candidates for council as well as backing their leader, Cllr Mehmood Mirza, for mayor.

But not all of their candidates live in the borough.

• Zulfiqar Ahmed, standing in Canning Town North, lives in Waltham Forest
• Syed Rafiz Hayder, standing in Canning Town South, also gives an address in Waltham Forest
• Sabrin Ara Hoque, candidate in Forest Gate South, lives in Redbridge
• MD Maksudul Haque, standing in Stratford, lives in Enfield 
• Attia Bano, standing in West Ham, gives an address in Barking and Dagenham

There is nothing illegal or improper about this, of course. To stand as a local councillor in England, you must be registered to vote or have lived, worked, or owned property in the area for at least 12 months before the election. I don’t know which of the non-resident qualifications each of these has used to justify their place on the ballot, but owning property here would be consistent with the party’s pro-landlord policy platform.

In the spirit of fairness, I should point out there are other non-Newham candidates in this election:

• Muhammad Asim, independent candidate for Forest Gate South, lives in Ilford
• Jazmine Whomes, a Liberal Democrat standing in Forest Gate South, has an address in Redbridge
• Shazia Anjum, independent candidate for Plaistow South, also lives in Redbridge
• Bradley James Fage, the “Local Conservative” in Royal Victoria lives in Wandsworth
• George Wright, the other “Local Conservative” in Royal Victoria lives in Lewisham
• Lucerne Sainclair, independent candidate for Stratford, lives in Ealing

While it’s quite funny that a party branding itself as Newham’s local voice should be standing non-resident candidates, it is absolutely hilarious that the “Local Conservatives” are doing it too.

Tags: Local Elections 2026, Newham Independents