Aspire | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Lutfur Rahman |
| Treasurer | Jahed Choudhury |
| Nominating Officer | Lilian Collins |
| Founded | 26 January 2018 |
| Preceded by | Tower Hamlets First |
| Headquarters | 28 Castlemain Street Whitechapel London |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Left-wing[4] |
| Tower Hamlets Council[5][6] | 21 / 45 |
| Directly elected single authority mayors in England | 1 / 13 |
Aspire is a British localpolitical party in theLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets, England, formed byLutfur Rahman and councillors elected as members of hisTower Hamlets First party. After Tower Hamlets First was removed from the register of political parties following voting fraud and malpractice, its councillors formed theTower Hamlets Independent Group (THIG).[7][8] After some defections, the remaining Tower Hamlets Independent Group councillors registered formally as a political party in 2018.[9] Most of its elected members were formerLabour Party members, with a few exceptions.
It was the largest political opposition onTower Hamlets Council before the 2018 May elections and then gained majority control of the council in the2022 election, winning 24 of the council's 45 seats. Rahman was also re-elected mayor in those elections.
Tower Hamlets First was established byLutfur Rahman on 18 September 2013. Formerly the Labour leader of Tower Hamlets council, Rahman had been elected as Mayor in 2010. The party stood candidates in the2014 Tower Hamlets Council election,[10][11] where it won 18 out of 45 seats, becoming the second-largest party on Tower Hamlets Council and the fifth-largest political party out of all London borough councils. The party was suspended in 23 April 2015, after anelection court report that found Rahman "personally guilty of 'corrupt or illegal practices' or both" with the party labelled as a "one-man band".[12] The party was removed from thelist of political parties maintained by theElectoral Commission on 29 April 2015.[13]
Following the dissolution of Tower Hamlets First, the majority of former party members established the Tower Hamlets Independent Group (THIG) to co-ordinate activity on the council. Six members subsequently left the Tower Hamlets Independent Group to form the competingPeople's Alliance group.[14] The remaining THIG councillors then became Aspire.[citation needed]
Although then barred from running for elected office himself, Rahman was behind the party. Aspire was his second attempt at a new party after an application under the name 'Tower Hamlets Together'[15] was rejected.[16]
The ideology of the party is self-described as a form ofdemocratic socialism.[17] It has been criticised for only fielding candidates ofBangladeshi heritage for the 2022 Tower Hamlets local election, with only three of their candidates being female.[18][19] Shortly after these elections, new allegations over voter intimidation, family voting and impersonating voters were raised by independent observers.[20]
Between its formation and the May 2018 elections, Aspire councillors occupied 10 of the 45 council seats on theTower Hamlets Council.[21]
| Name | Ward |
|---|---|
| Ohid Ahmed | Lansbury |
| Suluk Ahmed | Spitalfields & Banglatown |
| Mahbub Alam | St Dunstan's |
| Gulam Kibria Choudhury | Poplar |
| Harun Miah | Shadwell |
| Md. Maium Miah | Canary Wharf |
| Mohammed Mufti Miah | Bromley North |
| Muhammad Ansar Mustaquim | St Peter's |
| Oliur Rahman | Stepney Green |
| Gulam Robbani | Spitalfields & Banglatown |
Ohid Ahmed was a seniorLabour Party councillor as a cabinet member between 2002 and 2010.[22] He was also the Labour Party candidate forWest Suffolk in2010,[23] andDeputy Mayor of Tower Hamlets between 2010 and 2014.[24] Harun Miah was formerly aRespect Party Councillor.[25] Maium Miah was formerly aConservative Party councillor for Millwall before joining Tower Hamlets First, and stood inCanary Wharf ward in 2014.[26]
The party's general secretary, Lillian Collins, was formerly Labour's chair in Tower Hamlets.[27]
Ohid Ahmed stood in the2018 election for directly elected Mayor of Tower Hamlets,[28] coming third behind Labour and thePeople's Alliance of Tower Hamlets, a group that had earlier split from the Tower Hamlets Independent Group. Ahmed was endorsed by Rahman.[27]
On 4 April 2018, Aspire launched its campaign for the borough elections in Tower Hamlets,[27] with a full slate of 45 council candidates.[29] It won no seats.
Aspire stood in two council by-elections in Tower Hamlets on 7 February 2019, with Harun Miah winning the one in Shadwell ward and Ohid Ahmed coming second in Lansbury ward.[30]
On 12 August 2021, Aspire stood in the by-election to the Weavers ward via candidate Kabir Ahmed winning 47%. He had served some years as Councillor until 2014. That election followed the death of the Labour incumbent.[31]
Following a five-year ban from holding public office, Lutfur Rahman was again elected asMayor of Tower Hamlets in theMay 2022 local elections, defeating Labour incumbentJohn Biggs.[32] Aspire was also successful in the Borough Council election, winning a majority with 24 out of 45 seats.[33]
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