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Gaffe-prone Johnson is London Mayor

LONDON: Until a few weeks ago, he was regarded as a bit of joke in his own party and derided as a “bumbling buffoon.” But on Saturday, in an ultimate humiliation for the Labour Party, Londoners elected Right-wing Tory candidate Boris Johnson as their Mayor, ending Ken Livingstone’s eight-year reign.

Mr. Livingstone, a Labour veteran once hailed as “Red Ken” for his intensely Left-wing views, paid the price as much for his own arrogance as for the widespread public resentment against his party reflected in its rout in Thursday’s local elections.

Mr. Johnson, sacked from the Tory shadow Cabinet over a sex scandal and banished to the margins of political mainstream, came literally from behind to topple Mr. Livingstone by a huge margin on the back of an aggressive “Stop Ken” campaign by Evening Standard, London’s most influential cheerleader for the Tories.

It was a remarkable victory considering that the famously gaffe-prone Mr. Johnson was not even his party’s first choice and ended up as its candidate almost by default after several prominent figures declined.

Mr. Livingstone, whose most notable achievement was the introduction of London “congestion charge” — a concept later copied by other major cities around the world — had become unpopular lately following allegations of cronyism.

His defeat followed the Labour Party’s worst performance in local elections in 40 years, setting the Tories on course to win the next general election in 2009-2010, and raising questions about Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s leadership.

Mr. Livingstone took full responsibility for his defeat. “You can’t be Mayor for eight years and then if you don’t at third term say it was somebody else’s fault. I accept that responsibility,” he said.

Mr. Johnson, who fought on an agenda of tackling crime and improving the city’s transport services, said the result showed that the “greatest, most cosmopolitan, multi-racial and generous-hearted city on earth” had finally embraced the Tories.

“I will work flat out to repay and to justify your confidence. Where there have been mistakes we will rectify them, where there are achievements we will build on them, where there are neglected opportunities we will seize on them,” he added.

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