2002 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election

2002 Tower Hamlets London Borough Council election

←  1998 2 May 2002 (2002-05-02) 2006  →
All 51 seats up for election to Tower Hamlets London Borough Council 26 seats needed for a majority
Registered	136,572 [1]
Turnout	41,613, 30.47% ( 5.60) [1]
First party Second party Third party   Leader Helal U. Abbas Unknown Unknown Party Labour Liberal Democrats Conservative Leader since 2001 Unknown Unknown Leader's seat Spitalfields and Banglatown Unknown Unknown Last election 41 seats, 54.47% 9 seats, 25.74% 0 seats, 10.29% Seats before 42 8 0 Seats won 35 16 0 Seat change 6 7 Popular vote 52,200 34,928 17,210 Percentage 45.74% 30.60% 15.08% Swing 8.73 4.86 4.79
Map of the results of the 2002 Tower Hamlets council election. Labour in red and Liberal Democrats in yellow.
Council control before election Labour Council control after election Labour

Elections to Tower Hamlets London Borough Council were held on 2 May 2002. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 1998 increasing the number of seats by 1. The Labour party kept overall control of the council.

Background

Council Composition

In between the 1998 election and this election, there was one by-election held to replace a councillor who had died which resulted in Labour gaining a seat from the Liberal Democrats. As a result of this, the composition of the council just before the election was as follows: ^[2]

↓

42	8
Labour	Lib Dem

Redistricting

Along with all other London Borough Councils, Tower Hamlets went through a major redistricting that went into effect for this election. The changes were as follows: ^[3]

Wards Created

• Blackwall and Cubitt Town (3) - created from parts of Blackwall and Millwall wards
• Bromley-by-Bow (3) - Created from parts of Bromley and Lansbury wards
• Mile End and Globe Town (3) - Created from parts of Holy Trinity, St Dunstan's, St James' and St Peter's wards
• Mile End East (3) - Created from parts of Bromley and Limehouse wards
• St Dustan's and Stepney Green (3) - Created from parts of St Dunstan's and Redcoat wards
• St Katharine's and Wapping (3) - Created from parts of St Katharine's and Shadwell wards
• Whitechapel (3) - Created from parts of St Katharine's, St Mary's and Redcoat wards

Wards Eliminated

• Blackwall (2) - Land split between Blackwall and Cubitt Town, Limehouse and Millwall wards
• Bromley (3) - Land split between Bromley-by-Bow and Mile End East wards
• Grove (2) - Land became party of the new Bow West ward
• Holy Trinity (3) - Land split between Bethnal Green South and Mile End and Globe Town wards
• Park (2) - Land split between Bow East and Bow West wards
• Redcoat (2) - Land split between St Dunstan's and Stepney Green and Whitechapel wards
• St Dunstan's (3) - Land split between St Dunstan's and Stepney Green and Mile End and Globe Town wards
• St James' (2) - Land split between Bethnal Green North and Mile End and Globe Town wards
• St Katharine's (3) - Land split between St Katharine's and Wapping, Shadwell and Whitechapel wards.
• St Mary's (2) - Land absorbed into the new Whitechapel ward
• St Peter's (3) - Land split between Bethnal Green North and Bethnal Green South wards

Wards Renamed

• Spitalfields (3) - Renamed to Spitalfields and Banglatown

Wards Merged

• East India (2) and Lansbury (3) - merged into East India and Lansbury (3)

Wards Split

• Bow (3) - Split into Bow East (3) and Bow West (3).

Election result

2002 Tower Hamlet London Borough Council local elections ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour	35	23 [n 1]	29	6	68.63	45.74	52,200	8.73
	Liberal Democrats	16	16 [n 1]	9	7	31.37	30.60	34,928	4.86
	Conservative	0	0	0		0.00	15.08	17,210	4.79
	Green	0	0	0		0.00	4.73	5,399	New
	Independent	0	0	0		0.00	2.05	2,338	1.26
	London Socialist	0	0	0		0.00	1.07	1,224	New
	New Britain	0	0	0		0.00	0.41	470	New
	BNP	0	0	0		0.00	0.32	366	1.99
Total		51						114,135

Shortly after the election, Luftur Ali was disqualified from the election he won in Blackwall and Cubitt Town as it was discovered he was ineligible to be a councillor due to his job. A by-election was held on 27 June 2002 to replace him, electing Brian Son of the Labour Party to fill the seat. ^{[6] [7]}

After the elections, the council composition was as follows:

↓

35	16
Labour	Lib Dem

Ward results

(*) - Indicates an incumbent candidate

(†) - Indicates an incumbent candidate standing in a different ward

Bethnal Green North

Bethnal Green North (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Azizur R. Khan	1,224	43.47	New
	Liberal Democrats	John D.M. Griffiths	1,192
	Liberal Democrats	James R. Sanderson	1,097
	Labour	Stephen J. Beckett	878	31.88	New
	Labour	Raja Miah† [n 2]	866
	Labour	Diana R. Johnson† [n 3]	833
	Green	David Cox	233	7.44	New
	Green	Anna K. Hoad-Reddick	202
	Conservative	Sajjadur Rahman	196	6.78	New
	Conservative	David G. Ceasar	185
	Conservative	Brajendra N. Chaudhuri	167
	Green	Neil J. Thompson	166
	BNP	William F. Wren	162	6.01	New
	London Socialist	Glyn Robbins	119	4.42	New
Registered electors			8,289		New
Turnout			2,674	32.26	New
Rejected ballots			10	0.37	New
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

Bethnal Green South

Bethnal Green South (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sirajul Islam† [n 4]	1,385	43.94	New
	Liberal Democrats	Akikor Rahman	1,384	43.37	New
	Labour	Salim Ullah† [n 5]	1,331
	Liberal Democrats	Nurul Karim	1,309
	Labour	Raymond V. Marney† [n 6]	1,281
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Waites	1,252
	Conservative	Shahin Ahmed	239	6.83	New
	Conservative	Anamul Haque	201
	Green	Jonathan Hackett	190	5.86	New
	Conservative	Nicholas Sellick	181
	Green	Peter Howell	177
	Green	Gizelle Rush	166
Registered electors			8,636		New
Turnout			3,190	36.94	New
Rejected ballots			18	0.56	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Blackwall and Cubitt Town

Blackwall and Cubitt Town (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Lutfur R. Ali	876	44.57	New
	Labour	Julia Mainwaring† [n 7]	865
	Labour	Anthony J. Sharpe	793
	Conservative	Timothy J. Archer	568	28.12	New
	Conservative	Patricia J. Napier	534
	Conservative	Simon P. Rouse	497
	Liberal Democrats	Barrie A. Blandford	350	15.97	New
	Liberal Democrats	Alison J. Sanderson	310
	Liberal Democrats	Richard J.W. Ottaway	248
	Independent	Eric Pemberton	215	11.34	New
Registered electors			9,081		New
Turnout			1,951	21.48	New
Rejected ballots			15	0.77	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Bow East

Bow East (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Raymond G. Gipson† [n 8]	1,248	62.17	New
	Liberal Democrats	Nigel E.R. McCollum	1,204
	Liberal Democrats	Marian Williams† [n 8]	1,155
	Labour	Rupert Bawden	519	25.63	New
	Labour	Alexander K. Heslop† [n 9]	493
	Labour	David Guppy	475
	Green	Jessica F.N. Lack	136	6.43	New
	Green	Benjamin D. Holt	125
	Conservative	Alastair Holmes	120	5.77	New
	Conservative	Susanna G. Webb	116
	Green	Volker Heineman	112
	Conservative	Timothy Hudspith	99
Registered electors			7,056		New
Turnout			1,951	27.65	New
Rejected ballots			13	0.67	New
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

Bow West

Bow West (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Janet Ludlow† [n 10]	1,350	43.78	New
	Liberal Democrats	Hilary S. Phelps	1,149
	Liberal Democrats	Martin J. Rew	1,115
	Labour	Ala Uddin† [n 11]	946	33.58	New
	Labour	Belle Harris	939
	Labour	Geoffrey Thorington-Hassel	887
	Green	Janice D. Cartwright	280	10.08	New
	Green	Sandra J. McLeod	275
	Conservative	Kazi N. Alam	225	6.46	New
	London Socialist	Sheila McGregor	168	6.10	New
	Conservative	Francis A.C.S. Brown	155
	Conservative	Simon M. Gordon-Clark	153
Registered electors			8,035		New
Turnout			2,771	34.49	New
Rejected ballots			7	0.25	New
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

Bromley-by-Bow

Bromley-by-Bow (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David J. Edgar† [n 12]	1,650	70.04	New
	Labour	Abdul A. Sardar	1,641
	Labour	Khaled R. Khan	1,586
	Liberal Democrats	Brian L. Abson	353	14.11	New
	Liberal Democrats	Abdul Mannan	320
	Liberal Democrats	Phyllis D. Sheehan	310
	Green	Matthew S. Corbishley	225	7.69	New
	Conservative	James McLachlan	204	8.16	New
	Conservative	Barbara J. Perrott	186
	Conservative	Robert J.McG. Neill	178
	Green	Hidr Yildirim	132
Registered electors			7,407		New
Turnout			2,526	34.10	New
Rejected ballots			18	0.71	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

East India and Lansbury

East India and Lansbury (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ali M.O. Ahmed	1,015	38.62	New
	Liberal Democrats	Rajib Ahmed† [n 13]	869	30.92	New
	Labour	Kevin V. Morton† [n 14]	771
	Labour	Ron M. Harley	756
	Liberal Democrats	Harry S. Pavitt	583
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Wallace	583
	London Socialist	Kambiz Boomla	261	11.90	New
	Conservative	Peter Golds	253	10.45	New
	Conservative	Gareth L. Kennedy	239
	Conservative	Gillian Thomas	196
	Independent	Mohammed A. Haque	178	8.11	New
Registered electors			7,634		New
Turnout			2,171	28.44	New
Rejected ballots			11	0.51	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Limehouse

Limehouse (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ashton McGregor	1,026	46.15	19.80
	Labour	Judith A. Gardiner	1,003
	Labour	Khan A. Murshid† [n 15]	917
	Liberal Democrats	Russell P. Neale	414	18.56	5.02
	Liberal Democrats	Elizabeth E. Langley	413
	London Socialist	Mark Weeks	391	18.37	New
	Conservative	Philip J. Briscoe	377	16.92	12.19
	Conservative	Antonio E. Bello	364
	Liberal Democrats	Richard Winfield	358
	Conservative	Christopher D. Godfrey	339
Registered electors			8,678		2,503
Turnout			2,280	26.27	12.69
Rejected ballots			6	0.26	0.86
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)

Mile End and Globe

Mile End and Globe (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Mohammed J.U. Chowdhury	1,108	43.98	New
	Labour	Rofique U. Ahmed	1,042	36.54	New
	Liberal Democrats	Barrie C. Duffey† [n 16]	1,008
	Liberal Democrats	Rosina S. Tucker	950
	Labour	Sharmin Shajahan	778
	Labour	Graham M. Taylor	727
	Conservative	Jahidul Hoque	326	10.29	New
	Green	Christopher W. Coombes	267	9.20	New
	Green	Amelia J. Gordon	218
	Conservative	Michael J.G. Fletcher	217
	Conservative	Mohammad R. Karim	174
	Green	Jeremy G. Hicks	156
Registered electors			8,045		New
Turnout			2,547	31.66	New
Rejected ballots			11	0.43	New
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

Mile End East

Mile End East (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Helal Rahman	1,326	53.92	New
	Labour	Motin Uz-Zaman† [n 17]	1,303
	Labour	Abdus Salique	1,254
	Liberal Democrats	Mohammed S. Rahman	792	32.24	New
	Liberal Democrats	Bernard Cameron	791
	Liberal Democrats	Rick C.W.M. Pollock	739
	Conservative	John S. Livingstone	242	9.55	New
	Conservative	Simon Armand-Smith	233
	Conservative	Stephen P. Charge	213
	Independent	Bill Wakefield	103	4.29	New
Registered electors			7,196		New
Turnout			2,468	34.30	New
Rejected ballots			22	0.89	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Millwall

Millwall (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alan T. Amos	1,089	48.00	13.18
	Labour	Betheline Chattopadhyay† [n 18]	986
	Labour	Mumtaz Samad	970
	Conservative	Philip W. Groves	446	20.30	7.44
	Conservative	Paul W.E. Ingham	422
	Conservative	Alison L. Newton	420
	Liberal Democrats	Malcolm J.M. Cuthbert	313	12.59	3.52
	Liberal Democrats	Jean Stokes	245
	Liberal Democrats	Ian K. McDonald	241
	BNP	Gordon T. Callow	204	9.65	7.24
	London Socialist	Susan Gibson	200	9.46	New
Registered electors			9,302		2,889
Turnout			2,045	21.98	11.90
Rejected ballots			7	0.34	0.17
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)

St Dunstan's and Stepney Green

St Dunstan's and Stepney Green (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ataur Rahman† [n 19]	1,232	48.60	New
	Labour	Nasir Uddin	1,226
	Labour	Mohammed S. Uddin† [n 20]	1,105
	Conservative	Hafizur Rahman	828	26.08	New
	Conservative	Shamim A. Choudhury	566
	Conservative	Muhammade M. Hoque	518
	Liberal Democrats	Paula E.A. Palmer	418	15.15	New
	Liberal Democrats	George A. Crozier	393
	Liberal Democrats	Mohibur Rahman	300
	Green	Miriam P. Dodd	269	10.17	New
	Green	Craig T. Williams	261
	Green	Frances Schwartz	216
Registered electors			8,926		New
Turnout			2,833	31.74	New
Rejected ballots			23	0.81	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

St Katharine's and Wapping

St Katharine's and Wapping (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Denise Jones† [n 21]	1,082	43.10	New
	Labour	Shafiqul Haque	1,049
	Labour	Richard D. Brooks	1,034
	Conservative	Kevin A. Noles	842	31.87	New
	Conservative	William G.D. Norton	766
	Conservative	Toby N. Vintcent	733
	Liberal Democrats	Mohammed F-U. Ahmed	470	15.43	New
	Liberal Democrats	Marian Elsden	345
	Liberal Democrats	Alexandra E. Sugden	318
	New Britain	Dennis W. Delderfield	259	9.60	New
	New Britain	John Divito	211
Registered electors			8,508		New
Turnout			2,532	29.76	New
Rejected ballots			18	0.71	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Shadwell

Shadwell (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Manir U. Ahmed	1,265	59.53	10.91
	Labour	Michael J. Keith*	1,188
	Labour	Abdus Shukur*	1,076
	Liberal Democrats	Nanu Miah	512	20.82	New
	Conservative	William D. Crossey	429	19.65	1.79
	Conservative	Richard H. Powell	402
	Liberal Democrats	Catherine E. Buttimer	395
	Conservative	Maxwell W. Rumney	334
	Liberal Democrats	Gary J. Marsh	327
Registered electors			7,872		142
Turnout			2,162	27.46	4.38
Rejected ballots			14	0.65	0.96
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)

Spitalfields and Banglatown

Spitalfields and Banglatown (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Helal U. Abbas† [n 22]	936	42.60	New
	Labour	Ghulam Mortuza† [n 23]	848
	Labour	Lutfur Rahman	846
	Conservative	Md A.D. Rahman	400	16.47	New
	Conservative	Pir M.A. Quium	345
	Conservative	David Webb	272
	Liberal Democrats	Ahmed Hussain	255	10.35	New
	Green	Keith O. Magnum	198	7.68	New
	Liberal Democrats	Melvin M. Ramsay	198
	Liberal Democrats	Alas Uddin	186
	Independent	Muhit Ahmed	157	7.63	New
	Green	Annika Sanders	146
	Independent	Ismail K. Malik	137	6.66	New
	Green	Kerry Seager	130
	Independent	Alexander P. Vracas	124	6.03	New
	Independent	Sultan Ahmed	53	2.58	New
Registered electors			5,930		New
Turnout			1,876	31.64	New
Rejected ballots			13	0.69	New
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)
	Labour win (new boundaries)

Weavers

Weavers (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Abdul Matin	1,588	52.64	23.09
	Liberal Democrats	Louise Alexander	1,397
	Liberal Democrats	Timothy J. O'Flaherty	1,298
	Labour	Sirajul Islam	925	31.66	9.30
	Labour	Humaiun Kobir	919
	Labour	Eric McG. Taylor	732
	Conservative	Mohammed A. Kadir	295	7.09	0.90
	Green	Benjamin E. Hancocks	204	6.73	New
	Green	Marc Weaver	184
	Green	Stephen A. Wood	159
	Conservative	Jane E.P. Meehan	145
	Conservative	Joanna Noles	137
	Independent	Matt Bass	51	1.88	New
Registered electors			7,907		651
Turnout			2,842	35.94	4.18
Rejected ballots			20	0.70	0.36
	Liberal Democrats win (new boundaries)
	Liberal Democrats win (new boundaries)
	Liberal Democrats win (new boundaries)

Whitechapel

Whitechapel (3) ^{[4] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Abdul Asad† [n 24]	1,263	33.95	New
	Labour	Fanu Miah	1,142
	Labour	Doros Ullah	1,125
	Conservative	Mostafa Miah	592	14.75	New
	Conservative	Shafique Miah	475
	Conservative	Monsur A. Ahmed	466
	Independent	Mohamed Z. Ahmed	462	13.33	New
	Independent	Shamsuddin Ahmed	451	13.01	New
	Independent	Anu Miah	407	11.74	New
	Liberal Democrats	Deborah A. O'Flaherty	212	5.27	New
	Green	Jacqueline Goodman	205	5.50	New
	Green	Brendon O'Connor	200
	Liberal Democrats	Sajaul Karim	174
	Green	Melina La Firenze	167
	Liberal Democrats	Gulam Hossain	162
	London Socialist	Philip Billows	85	2.45	New
Registered electors			8,070		New
Turnout			2,696	33.41	New
Rejected ballots			26	0.96	New
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

Notes

1. losses and gains include both those from eliminated seats and new seats as well as those from seats that changed hands
2. Miah was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct St Peter's ward
3. Johnson was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Lansbury
4. Islam was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Holy Trinity ward. He was elected in a by-election triggered by the death of Cllr. Albert J. Snooks in 2001 ^[8]
5. Ullah was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Holy Trinity ward.
6. Marney was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct St Peter's ward
7. Mainwaring was a sitting councillor representing the Millwall ward
8. Gipson and Williams were sitting councillor representing the now defunct Bow ward
9. Heslop was a sitting councillor representing the St Mary's ward
10. Ludlow was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Grove ward
11. Uddin was a sitting councillor representing the Spitalfields ward
12. Edgar was a sitting councillor representing the Limehouse ward
13. Ahmed was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct East India ward. He was initially elected as a Labour councillor but has since joined the Liberal Democrats.
14. Morton was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Lansbury ward
15. Murshid was a sittinng councillor representing the now defunct Blackwall ward
16. Duffey was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Holy Trinity ward
17. Uz-Zaman was a sittinng councillor representing the now defunct St Mary's ward
18. Chattopadhyay was a sitting councillor representing the Bromley ward
19. Rahman was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct Redcoat ward
20. Uddin was a sittinng councillor representing the now defunct St Dustans ward
21. Jones was a sitting councillor representing the now defunct St Katharines ward
22. Abbas was a sitting councillor representing the Limehouse ward
23. Mortuza was a sitting councillor representinng the now defunct Spitalfields ward
24. Asad was a sitting councillor representing the St Katharines ward

References

1. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 2 May 2002 - Ward Voting Statistics" (PDF). London Datastore. Greater London Authority. p. 206. Retrieved 17 October 2025.
2. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 2 May 2002 - Changes 1998-02" (PDF). London Datastore. Greater London Authority. p. 156. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
3. legislation.gov.uk - The London Borough of Tower Hamlets (Electoral Changes) Order 2000. Retrieved on 2 March 2015.
4. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 2 May 2002" (PDF). London Datastore. Greater London Authority. pp. 158–160, 206–207. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
5. Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael. "London Borough of Tower Hamlets Election Results 1964-2010" (PDF). Elections Centre. Plymouth University. pp. 9–10. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
6. "Voters turn away from BNP". 28 June 2002. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
7. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 2 May 2002" (PDF). London Datastore. Greater London Authority. p. 158. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
8. {{cite web|url=https://data.london.gov.uk/download/3d9f79d6-f2d8-4f42-910e-a9564382c8b8/7ab5d023-6683-44ee-8638-dd00593e2055/London-Borough-Council-Elections-2002.pdf%7Ctitle=London Borough Council Elections - 2 May 2002 - By-election|access-date=16 Oct 2025|website=London Datastore|publisher=Greater London Authority |first1=Michael |last1=Minors |first2=Dennis |last2=Grenham

• 2002 Tower Hamlets election result
• Ward results