Tower Hamlets London Borough Council elections

A map showing the wards of Tower Hamlets from 2002 to 2014

Tower Hamlets London Borough Council, the local authority for the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, is elected every four years.

Political control

Election	Overall control		Conservative	Labour	Lib Dem	Communist	Respect	Aspire	Green	Others
1964		Labour	-	55	-	3	-	-	-	2
1968		Labour	-	57	-	3	-	-	-	-
1971		Labour	-	60	-	-	-	-	-	-
1974		Labour	-	60	-	-	-	-	-	-
1978		Labour	-	43	7	-	-	-	-	-
1982		Labour	-	31	18	-	-	-	-	1
1986		Alliance	-	24	26	-	-	-	-	-
1990		Liberal Democrats	-	20	30	-	-	-	-	-
1994		Labour	-	43	7	-	-	-	-	-
1998		Labour	-	41	9	-	-	-	-	-
2002		Labour	-	35	16	-	-	-	-	-
2006		Labour	7	26	6	-	12	-	-	-
2010		Labour	8	41	1	-	1	-	-	-
2014		No overall control	5	22	-	-	-	-	-	18χ
2018		Labour	2	42	-	-	-	-	-	1α
2022		Aspire	1	19	-	-	-	24	1	-

Key:

• ^αPeople's Alliance of Tower Hamlets
• ^χTower Hamlets First

Council elections

The first elections to Tower Hamlets council were in 1964, in readiness for the Council coming into being in 1965. The first two elections were held every three years, and since 1974 elections have been held every four years.

From 1964 to 1978, the Council had 60 members, and ward boundaries remained constant, with none of the wards crossing the old Metropolitan Borough boundaries. The number of Councillors was reduced to 50 for the 1978 elections, and ward boundaries were changed; these borders remained in use until 2002. The ward boundaries changed for the 2002 elections, with all wards receiving 3 member seats, increasing the numbers of Councillors to 51.

• 1964 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1968 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1971 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1974 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1978 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election (boundary changes increased the number of seats by ten)
• 1982 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1986 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1990 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 1994 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election (boundary changes took place but the number of seats remained the same)
• 1998 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 2002 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election (boundary changes increased the number of seats by one)
• 2006 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 2010 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 2014 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election (boundary changes reduced the number of seats by six)
• 2018 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election
• 2022 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election

Mayoral elections

• 2010 Tower Hamlets mayoral election

Borough result maps

• 
  2002 results map
• 
  2006 results map
• 
  2010 results map
• 
  2014 results map
• 
  2018 results map
• 
  2022 results map

By-election results

1964-1968

St Mary's by-election, 13 August 1964

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Communist	Barney Borman	709
	Labour	J. Duggan	297
	Liberal	M. Dove	217
Majority			412
Turnout			5,664	21.6
	Communist hold		Swing

Poplar Millwall by-election, 19 November 1965

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ted Johns	662
	Tenants Association	L.A. Jordan	535
Majority			127
Turnout			5,505	21.8
	Labour gain from Independent		Swing

• The gain was from the Residents' Association.

1968-1971

St Mary's by-election, 26 June 1969

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	R. W. Ashkettle	533
	Communist	D. Lyons	454
Majority			79
Turnout				17.1
	Labour gain from Communist		Swing

Bethnal Green West by-election, 24 September 1970

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. H. Main	633
	Liberal	C. Suett	82
	Conservative	J. R. M. Baker	56
Majority			551
Turnout				13.4
	Labour hold		Swing

Holy Trinity by-election, 24 September 1970

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	I. P. McDougall	667
	Communist	D. Lyons	127
	Conservative	A. Heller	64
Majority			540
Turnout				11.1
	Labour hold		Swing

Poplar East by-election, 24 September 1970

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Beasley	1,223
	Conservative	R. W. Hartley	69
	Union Movement	S. S. Bailey	33
Majority			1,154
Turnout				19.2
	Labour hold		Swing

1971-1974

There were no by-elections.

1974-1978

Limehouse by-election, 20 March 1975

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John C. O'Neill	776
	Liberal	Maurice Caplan	289
	National Front	Frank C. Berry	161
Majority			487
Turnout			7,101	17.3
	Labour hold		Swing

Poplar South by-election, 31 March 1977

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Arthur Sanders	551
	Conservative	Selwyn P. Williams	227
	National Front	Frank C. Berry	173
	Independent Labour	Victor J. Clark	43
Majority			324
Turnout			4,333	23.0
	Labour hold		Swing

Spitalfields by-election, 20 October 1977

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Geoffrey G. N. White	816
	Socialist Unity	Hilda K. Kean	242
	Conservative	Edna Hill	133
	National Front	Beverley J. Matthews	70
Majority			574
Turnout			5,573	22.8
	Labour hold		Swing

1978-1982

Bow by-election, 6 March 1980

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Felicity A. Coakley	936
	Labour	Albert J. Snooks	697
	Conservative	John S. Livingstone	46
	National Front	Victor J. Clark	43
Majority			239
Turnout			5,350	32.3
	Liberal hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Peter Gray.

Blackwall by-election, 9 July 1981

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John J. Boles	512
	Conservative	Simon P. McCall	105
	Independent Labour	Peter Read	54
	National Front	Susan I. Clapp	19
	Nationalist Party	George A. Williams	12
Majority			407
Turnout			4,260	16.6
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Arthur Sanders.

Weavers by-election, 9 July 1981

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edward Bishop	574
	National Front	Victor J. Clark	95
	Conservative	Linda M. Archibald	87
	Nationalist Party	Sheila Payne	37
Majority			479
Turnout			6,994	11.5
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Arthur M. Praag.

1982-1986

Grove by-election, 7 July 1983

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Janet I. Ludlow	1,105
	Labour	Belle Harris	414
Majority			691
Turnout			3,771	40.4
	Liberal hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Edward Lewis.

Bromley by-election, 1 March 1984

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Beryl Day	1,461
	Labour	Neil J. McAree	1,446
Majority			17
Turnout			6,892	42.3
	Liberal gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Patrick A. Desmond.

St Peter's by-election, 19 July 1984

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Josie Curran	1,324
	Labour	Albert C. Jacob	779
	National Front	Raymond J. Bradford	97
	Conservative	Robert J. Ingram	73
Majority			545
Turnout			7,306	31.2
	Liberal hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Dennis Hallam.

Spitalfields by-election, 18 July 1985

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Abbas Uddin	784
	Independent	Muhammad A. Hannan	775
	Conservative	Peter J. Ainsworth	174
Majority			9
Turnout			5,065	34.7
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Annie Elboz.

Blackwall by-election, 12 September 1985

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Christine Shawcroft	770
	Alliance	Jonathan P. Mathews	645
	Conservative	Robert G. Hughes	63
	BNP	David Ettridge	33
Majority			125
Turnout			4,003	37.8
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. John J. Boles.

1986-1990

Holy Trinity by-election, 3 July 1986

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Belinda J. Knowles	1,642
	Labour	Michael S. Chalkey	957
	National Front	Roger S. Evans	138
	Conservative	Paul W. E. Ingham	22
Majority			685
Turnout			6,851	40.6
	Liberal hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Belinda J. Knowles.

St Katharine's by-election, 22 September 1988

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John R. Biggs	1,374
	SDP	Anhar Uddin	485
	Conservative	Nicolas J. Gibb	326
	Green	Derek England	118
	Independent	Ronald W. Osborne	50
Majority			889
Turnout			8,459	28.0
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Mohammed S. Ahmed.

Lansbury by-election, 24 November 1988

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Stephen Bowen	1,256
	Liberal Democrats	Peter J. Hughes	1,164
	BNP	David Ettridge	49
	Conservative	Thomas M. Taylor	31
	Green	Derek England	21
	SDP	Anthony L. Norton	21
Majority			92
Turnout			6,479	39.4
	Labour gain from Liberal		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Pauline P. Fletcher.

1990-1994

Park by-election, 19 July 1990

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Ms. Elizabeth Baunton	779	50.5
	Labour	Philip N. Royal	598	38.8
	BNP	Stephen Smith	130	8.4
	Green	Derek England	18	1.2
	Conservative	John Livingstone	17	1.1
Majority			181	11.7
Turnout			4,271	36.4
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Margaret R. Atkins.

St Peter's by-election, 30 August 1990

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ms. Suzanne Sullivan	1,030	45.3
	Liberal Democrats	Terence Cowley	915	40.3
	BNP	Kenneth Walsh	275	12.1
	Conservative	Ms. Sarah-Jane Quinlan	53	2.3
Majority			115	5.0
Turnout			7,375	30.8
	Labour gain from Lib Dem Focus Team		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Brenda M. Collins.

Spitalfields by-election, 27 August 1992

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Syed A. Mizan	1,098	64.0
	Conservative	Mohammed S. Bakth	536	31.2
	BNP	Kenneth A. Walsh	82	4.8
Majority			562	32.8
Turnout			5,501	31.2
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Abbas Uddin.

Millwall by-election, 1 October 1992

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edwin T. Johns	1,275	38.7	−6.3
	Lib Dem Focus Team	Jonathan P. Mathews	1,178	35.8	−4.1
	BNP	Barry J. Osborne	657	20.0
	Conservative	Jeremy P. Fage	182	5.5	−1.9
Majority			97	2.9
Turnout			9,756	33.8
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Ivan F. Walker.

Millwall by-election, 16 September 1993

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BNP	Derek W. Beackon	1,480	33.8
	Labour	James J. Hunt	1,473	33.7	−11.4
	Lib Dem Focus Team	Jennifer E. Mills	1,284	29.6	−10.6
	Conservative	Timothy R. Dickenson	134	3.1	−4.4
Majority			7	0.1
Turnout			9,960	44.0
	BNP gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. David J. Chapman.

1994-1998

Shadwell by-election, 15 September 1994

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael J. Keith	1,783
	Liberal Democrats	Richard F. Roberts	317
	BNP	Gordon Callow	305
	Conservative	Paul W. E. Ingham	74
Majority			1,466
Turnout			6,848	36.2
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Albert Lilley.

Lansbury by-election, 15 December 1994

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael C. Keating	1,457
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Hughes	844
	BNP	Derek W. Beackon	562
	Conservative	John S. Livingstone	24
Majority			613
Turnout			5,832	49.5
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Eric A. Commons.

Weavers by-election, 22 February 1995

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mohammed Ali	1,388
	Ind. Lib Dem	Terry B. Milson	551
	BNP	David M. King	486
	Liberal Democrats	Sajjad Miah	482
	Militant Labour	Hugo C. Pierre	112
Majority			837
Turnout			6,846	44.1
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Vanessa L. Peters.

Limehouse by-election, 9 November 1995

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William E. Wakefield	1,467
	Liberal Democrats	Paul A. Bargery	625
	BNP	Gordon T. Callow	147
	Conservative	David C. Hoile	53
Majority			842
Turnout			5,877	39.0
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. John P. Ryan.

St Mary's by-election, 9 May 1996

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Judith A. Gardiner	1,027	62.5
	Liberal Democrats	James Langan	267	16.3
	Conservative	Reza A. Choudhury	243	14.8
	Militant Labour	Hugo C. Pierre	106	6.4
Majority			760	46.2
Turnout			4,346	37.8
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Amanda Linton.

1998-2002

Holy Trinity by-election, 28 June 2001

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sirajul Islam	1,081	53.5	+11.5
	Liberal Democrats	Rosina S. Tucker	817	40.5	−2.9
	BNP	Lynda Miller	74	3.7	−1.0
	Socialist Alliance	Pauline Kempster	47	2.3	+2.3
Majority			264	13.0
Turnout			2,019	27.1
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Albert J. Snooks.

2002-2006

Blackwall & Cubitt Town by-election, 27 June 2002

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Brian Son	686	31.3	−12.3
	Conservative	Timothy J. Archer	676	30.8	+2.5
	Liberal Democrats	Nurul Karim	361	16.4	−1.0
	Independent	Terry D. Johns	252	11.5	+0.8
	BNP	Gordon Callow	87	4.0	+4.0
	Independent	Eric Pemberton	68	3.1	+3.1
	Independent	Shah M. A. Haque	21	1.0	+1.0
	New Britain	Dennis W. Delderfield	19	0.9	+0.9
	Green	Keith O. Magnum	16	0.7	+0.7
	Socialist Alliance	Theresa R. Selby	9	0.4	+0.4
Majority			10	0.5
Turnout			2,195	24.0
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Lutfur R. Ali.

St Dunstans & Stepney Green by-election, 29 July 2004

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Respect	Oliur Rahman	878	31.1	+31.1
	Liberal Democrats	Jalal Uddin	754	26.7	+11.5
	Labour	Shah H. Rahman	578	20.4	−24.4
	Conservative	Alexander P. Story	445	15.7	−14.4
	National Front	Lynda Miller	172	6.1	+6.1
Majority			124	4.4
Turnout			2,827	29.9
	Respect gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the disqualification of Cllr. Nasir Uddin.

Millwall by-election, 9 September 2004

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Simon P. Rouse	828	34.8	+15.0
	Respect	Paul R. L. McGarr	635	26.7	+26.7
	Labour	John C. Cray	571	24.0	−24.4
	Independent	Andrew P. Sweeney	195	8.2	+8.2
	Liberal Democrats	Barry A. Blandford	150	6.3	−7.6
Majority			193	8.1
Turnout			2,379	23.2
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Mumtaz Samad.

2006-2010

Shadwell by-election, 9 August 2007

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Respect	Harun Miah	1,512	43.2	−1.7
	Labour	Michael Keith	1,415	40.4	+9.2
	Conservative	William Crossey	476	13.6	−3.9
	Liberal Democrats	Rosie Clarke	98	2.8	−3.6
Majority			97	2.8
Turnout			3,501	39.7
	Respect hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Shamin A. Chowdhury.

Millwall by-election, 1 May 2008

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David A. Snowdon	2,133	48.5	+4.7
	Labour	Doros Ullah	1,421	32.3	+0.6
	Liberal Democrats	Mohammed N. Uddin	370	8.4	−0.7
	BNP	Jeffrey Marshall	219	5.0	+5.0
	Respect	Reza Mahbob	170	3.9	−11.5
	Left List	Rebecaa J. Townesend	83	1.9	+1.9
Majority			712	16.2
Turnout			4,396	38.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Simon P. Rouse.

Weavers by-election, 1 May 2008

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Fazlul Haque	1,421	37.4	+18.3
	Liberal Democrats	John D. Griffiths	930	24.5	−16.2
	Respect	Dilwara Begum	637	16.8	−1.8
	Conservative	Gias U. Ahmed	435	11.5	+5.8
	BNP	Russell Pick	154	4.1	+4.1
	Independent	Sara A. J. Dixon	143	3.8	−3.9
	Independent	Niru Murshid	77	2.0	+2.0
Majority			491	12.9
Turnout			3,797	47.7
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Louise Alexander.

Mile End East by-election, 20 November 2008

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rachael Saunders	1,208	47.3	+18.5
	Conservative	Motiur Rahman	630	24.7	+13.7
	Respect	Hafiz Choudury	604	23.7	−0.9
	Liberal Democrats	Jainal Chowdury	110	4.3	−15.6
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing	19.4

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Rupert Bawden.

2010-2014

Spitalfields & Banglatown by-election, 16 December 2010

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Respect	Fozol Miah	666	45.4
	Labour	Abdul Alim	553	37.7
	Conservative	Matt Smith	135	9.2
	Green	Maggie Crosbie	52	3.5
	Liberal Democrats	Ferdy North	33	2.2
	Independent	Jewel Choudhury	28	1.9
Majority			113	7.7
Turnout			8,827	16.8
	Respect gain from Labour		Swing	10.1

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Lutfur Rahman.

Spitalfields & Banglatown by-election, 19 April 2012

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Gulam Robbani	1030
	Labour	Ala Uddin	987
	Conservative	Matthew J. Smith	140
	Green	Ms. Kirsty Blake	99
	Liberal Democrats	Richard A. Macmillan	39
Turnout				31.4%
	Independent hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the disqualification of Cllr. Ms. Shelina Akhtar.

Weavers by-election, 3 May 2012

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Pierce	1544
	Respect	Abjol Miah	1260
	Conservative	Ms. Caroline J. Kerswell	415
	Green	Alan Duffel	373
	Liberal Democrats	Azizur R. Khan	208
	Independent	Oli Rothschild	36
Turnout				44.6%
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Ms. Anna S. Lynch.

2014–2018

A by-election for the ward of Stepney Green was held on 11 June 2015, after the sitting councillor, Alibor Choudhury, was found guilty of corrupt and illegal practices by an election court.

Stepney Green by-election 11 June 2015

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sabina Akhtar	1,643	42.1	−9.1
	Independent	Abu Chowdhury	1,472	37.7	N/A
	Green	Kirsty Chestnutt	272	7.0	N/A
	UKIP	Paul Shea	203	5.2	−2.9
	Conservative	Safiul Azam	158	4.0	−0.4
	Liberal Democrats	Will Dyer	114	2.9	−0.3
	Something New	Jessie Macneil-Brown	40	1.0	N/A
Majority			171	4.4
Turnout			3,902	47.3
	Labour gain from Tower Hamlets First		Swing

A by-election for the ward of Whitechapel was held on 1 December 2016, after the sitting councillor, Shahed Ali, was found guilty of housing fraud. Another independent candidate, Ahmed Shafi, won the seat.

Whitechapel by-election 1 December 2016

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Shafi Ahmed	1,147	42.7	N/A
	Labour	Victoria Obaze	823	30.6	−22.3
	Conservative	William Fletcher	217	8.1	+1.1
	Liberal Democrats	Emanuel Andejelic	173	6.4	−2.2
	Green	James Wilson	170	6.3	−2.4
	UKIP	Martin Smith	156	5.8	N/A
Majority			324
Turnout			2,686	32.6
	Independent gain from Labour		Swing

2018-2022

Shadwell by-election 7 February 2019

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Aspire	Harun Miah	1,012	34.85
	Labour	Asik Rahman	914	31.47
	Liberal Democrats	Abjol Miah	484	16.67
	Conservative	Daryl Martin Stafford	185	6.37
	Green	Tim Kiely	125	4.3
	Independent	Kazi Mohammad Gous-Miah	119	4.1
	Women's Equality	Elena Scherbatykh	65	2.24
Majority			98	3.38
Turnout			2,904	35.39	−14.5
	Aspire gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Ruhul Amin.

Lansbury by-election 7 February 2019

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rajib Ahmed	1,308	40.8
	Aspire	Abul Monsur Ohid Ahmed	1,002	31.25
	Liberal Democrats	Muhammad Abul Asad	290	9.05
	UKIP	Paul Shea	176	5.49
	Conservative	Mumshad Afruz	175	5.46
	Green	John David Urpeth	166	5.18
	The House Party Homes for Londoners	Terence McGrenera	89	2.78
Majority			306	9.55
Turnout			3,206	26.51	−14.8
	Labour hold		Swing	{{{swing}}}

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Mohammad Harun.

Weavers by-election 12 August 2021

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Aspire	Kabir Ahmed	1,204	46.47
	Labour	Nasrin Akter Khanam	742	28.64
	Conservative	Elliott Weaver	360	13.89
	Green	Nathalie Sylvia Bienfait	205	7.91
	Liberal Democrats	Emanuel Tomislav Andjelic	50	1.93
	TUSC	Hugo Pierre	30	1.16
Majority			462	17.83
Turnout			2,591
	Aspire gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. John Pierce.

See also

• Derek Beackon

External links

• Tower Hamlets Council website