In the 2000 London mayoral election, the independent candidate Ken Livingstone won. He announced that he would rotate the position of deputy mayor equally between the four parties represented in the London Assembly (Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green). He offered the role to Nicky Gavron of the Labour Party for the first year. After some political maneuvering, she accepted.
However in 2001, Ken Livingstone decided not to offer the role to the Conservatives, claiming it would be disruptive, so Nicky Gavron retained the post. In 2002 the Liberal Democrats were asked to nominate a candidate but declined, saying that it would be better to scruntinise the mayor from an independent position. Again Nicky Gavron remained. In 2003, the Greens accepted an offer to nominate a deputy mayor and selected Jenny Jones, who became London's second deputy mayor.
Nicky Gavron was originally chosen as the Labour candidate for the 2004 London mayoral election but she stepped aside when Ken Livingstone was invited to rejoin the party. They then ran on a joint ticket as Labour's candidates for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor. She is expected to serve as Ken Livingstone's deputy for the duration of his second term.
In his first term, Ken Livingstone came under fire for delegating his powers to his Chief of Staff Simon Fletcher rather than the deputy mayor on several occasions.
External links
Appointment of Deputy Mayors
Guardian article about the Greens selecting Jenny Jones to be deputy mayor in 2003 (http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,3605,898597,00.html) (also includes background on Ken Livingstone's deputy mayor rotation system)
The DeputyMayor of London is a member of the London Assembly appointed by the Mayor of London to serve as his or her second-in-command.
The deputymayor received a salary of £67,150 in 2002/03.
Nicky Gavron was originally chosen as the Labour candidate for the 2004 Londonmayoral election but she stepped aside when Ken Livingstone was invited to rejoin the party.
Many elected deputymayors are members of the city council who are given the title and serve as Acting Mayor in the mayor's absence.
Appointive deputymayors serve at the pleasure of the mayor and may function as chief operating officers; in some large communities such as New York City, there are multiple deputymayors who handle coordination of specific policy areas.
There may be within the same municipal government a deputymayor or mayors appointed by the mayor to policy areas and a popularly-elected vice mayor who serves as the mayor's successor in the event the office is vacated by death, resignation, disability, or even impeachment.
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