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Lewisham
Nation / PlaceGB

Lewisham

South-east London borough; first Green mayoral win in any London borough, May 2026.

Last refreshed: 3 June 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic

Key Question

How did Lewisham go from a Labour safe seat to a Green borough in one election?

Timeline for Lewisham

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Common Questions
Why did the Green Party launch their 2026 campaign in Deptford?
Deptford is in Lewisham, one of the Labour London councils the Greens are explicitly targeting. The launch site was chosen to signal a direct challenge to Labour in south-east London.Source: uk-elections-2026
Are the Greens targeting Lewisham council in 2026?
Yes. The Green Party launched its 2026 local election campaign in Deptford, Lewisham, making it a symbolic target for Zack Polanski's assault on Labour-held London councils.Source: uk-elections-2026
Who won the Lewisham mayoral election in 2026?
Liam Shrivastava of the Green Party won the Lewisham mayoral election on 7 May 2026. Along with Zoë Garbett's win in Hackney, it was one of the first two Green elected mayoralties in any London borough.Source: event

Background

Lewisham is a south-east London borough bordered by Greenwich, Bromley, Catford, and Deptford. It has a population of approximately 310,000 and includes areas such as New Cross, Telegraph Hill, Forest Hill, and Brockley. Like Hackney, Lewisham has experienced rapid demographic change in recent years, with younger and more progressive households moving into areas historically characterised by working-class communities.

The Green Party selected Deptford, in the north of Lewisham, as the launch site for Zack Polanski's 2026 local election campaign in April, a deliberate signal that the Greens were targeting traditional Labour ground rather than comfortable strongholds. The Deptford launch was both a strategic statement and a geographic one: Deptford sits on the boundary of Lewisham and Greenwich, maximising media visibility across both boroughs.

On 7 May 2026, Liam Shrivastava won the Lewisham mayoralty for the Green Party, making Lewisham and Hackney the first two Green-controlled London boroughs in the party's history. The TWIN wins confirmed that the Green surge in London was not confined to a single demographic pocket and gave the party a platform for urban governance.

More questions
Why did the Green Party launch its 2026 campaign in Lewisham?
The Greens chose Deptford, in the north of Lewisham, for Zack Polanski's campaign launch in April 2026. It was a deliberate statement: targeting a traditional Labour south London area rather than established Green heartlands, signalling ambition to break Labour's hold on inner London.Source: event
Is Lewisham Labour or Green now?
Lewisham elected a Green mayor, Liam Shrivastava, on 7 May 2026. Previously a Labour stronghold, the borough became one of the first two Green-controlled London boroughs alongside Hackney.Source: event
Where is Lewisham?
Lewisham is a south-east London borough. It borders Greenwich to the east, Bromley to the south, and Southwark and Deptford to the north. Key areas include New Cross, Forest Hill, Telegraph Hill, and Brockley.