Newham has elected Labour Party candidate Forhad Hussain as its new mayor, giving the east London borough its first change at the top of the council in eight years.
Hussain won 25,538 votes and will lead Newham Council for the next four years. He succeeds Labour’s Rokhsana Fiaz OBE, who served two full terms as mayor.
The result keeps the mayoralty in Labour hands, but it arrives alongside a more mixed council chamber after the 2026 local election count. Labour remains the largest party, while the Newham Independents Party and the Green Party both secured sizeable groups of councillors.
Hussain wins the mayoralty with 25,538 votes
Forhad Hussain described his election as the “honour of my life” and said he would begin work with “energy and determination” for every part of the borough.
“The election matters because people deserve a choice. Democracy works when people are willing to step forward and serve,” he said after the result was announced.
His victory means Newham residents will see a new mayoral administration for the first time since Rokhsana Fiaz took office in 2018. The directly elected mayor holds a central role in setting the council’s political direction, forming the executive cabinet and overseeing major decisions across local services.
Those decisions can affect housing, planning, public safety, street services, children’s services, adult social care, regeneration and the council’s budget priorities.
A former Plaistow North councillor returns to borough leadership
Hussain is not new to Newham politics. He served as a Labour councillor for Plaistow North from 2010 to 2018 and held senior cabinet responsibilities during that period.
His previous roles included Cabinet Member for Commercial Opportunities and Cabinet Member for Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour. That background places him back inside the council’s leadership structure with experience of both economic and community safety portfolios.
Plaistow North is also part of the political story of this election. The ward returned a mixed result, with Zulfiqar Ali elected for Labour and Nizam Ali and Sophia Naqvi elected for the Newham Independents Party.
Hussain said the borough was entering a new phase under his leadership. “This is the beginning of a new chapter for the borough. Together we will build a Newham where every resident will be proud to call home,” he said.
Labour leads the council but opposition groups grow
The council election results show Labour with 26 seats, ahead of the Newham Independents Party on 24 and the Green Party on 16.
| Party | Seats |
|---|---|
| Labour Party | 26 |
| Newham Independents Party | 24 |
| Green Party | 16 |
That distribution gives Labour the largest group on the council, while also showing a substantial presence for opposition councillors across the borough.
The Newham Independents Party won full slates in several wards, including Boleyn, East Ham, Green Street West, Little Ilford, Plaistow South and Wall End. The Green Party performed strongly in areas including Forest Gate South, Maryland, Stratford Olympic Park, Stratford and Royal Victoria.
Labour retained strength in wards such as Beckton, East Ham South, Manor Park, Custom House, Plaistow West and Canning Town East, and won seats in mixed wards including Canning Town North, Green Street East, Royal Albert and West Ham.
The next step is a new executive cabinet
Hussain is due to formally take up the mayoral role on Tuesday. Once in office, he will be asked to form an executive cabinet to lead on major decisions for Newham Council.
The cabinet appointments will be the first clear sign of how the new administration plans to organise Forhad Hussain’s priorities. Portfolio choices and named cabinet members will show which councillors are set to take responsibility for major service areas.
For residents, the immediate change is one of leadership rather than day-to-day service access. Council services continue, but political direction now moves from the Fiaz administration to Hussain’s mayoralty.
The new mayor’s first weeks are likely to focus on cabinet formation, briefings with senior officers and the early public signals around housing, community safety, finance and neighbourhood services.
Hussain said: “I start work next week with energy and determination to deliver for every part of the borough.”
Source: Newham Council
Source check Source trail
This report is based on Newham Council’s published announcement and election result details.
- Checked the named mayoral winner and reported vote total from the council source.
- Matched the change in leadership to the outgoing mayor named in the announcement.
- Used the published party seat totals for the council composition.
- Kept future steps limited to the stated Tuesday start date and cabinet formation process.
- Source
- Newham Council
- Scope
- Newham
- Updated
- 2026-06-04 17:53
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