On 2 May 2024 Londoners will cast their votes for the 25 members of the London Assembly, which is responsible for holding the mayor of London to account. This election takes place at the same time as the 2024 mayoral election. 

What is the history of the London Assembly?

The abolition of the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1986 left London without any directly elected city-wide institutions. In 1997 the Labour Party came to office with a commitment to re-establishing an elected tier of government for the capital, subject to a referendum “to confirm popular demand”. ¹² New Labour, Because Britain Deserves Better, election manifesto, 1997, labourmanifesto.com/1997/1997-labour-manifesto.shtml

Tony Blair’s government published a white paper in March 1998, setting out its plan to establish a new London Assembly along with the post of Mayor of London. This plan was backed by 72% of voters in a referendum held in May 1998. The assembly was then legally established by the Greater London Authority Act 1999, with the first election held in May 2000. 

How is the Assembly elected?

The Assembly comprises 25 members, elected by the additional member system – which is also used in elections for the Scottish and Welsh parliaments. Under this system, every voter casts two votes:

• The first is for a constituency candidate, selected using the first-past-the-post system.
• The second is to elect London-wide assembly members, who are selected from party lists.

There are 14 constituencies represented using the first-past-the-post system. A further 11 members are elected across Greater London according to the proportion of votes each party receives on the second vote, taking into account the number of seats won in the constituency vote to ensure greater proportionality in the overall result.

What happened in past London Assembly elections?

In all Assembly elections to date, only Conservative and Labour members have been elected on the constituency ballot. Various smaller parties have secured representation via the London-wide ballot.

At the 2021 election, Labour won 11 seats, the Conservatives won nine, the Green party won three and the Liberal Democrats won two.  

Turnout in London elections has broadly risen over time, from a low of 34% at the first vote in 2000 to a record 46% in 2016. In 2021, this dropped to 42% - in part caused by a substantial rise in the number of spoilt ballots.