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keeping the system under public ownership (Economist Dec. 7, 2000). The issue of funding the
improvements to the Underground was clearly a point of demarcation between Livingstone and
the party, and it would play an important part in the campaign.
Candidate Notoriety
While Livingstone’s willingness to flout party convention shocked the Labor Party elite,
his subsequent decision to enter the race as an independent was certainly a blow to the party.
Livingstone had a long history of acting outside the norms of convention and a great deal of
notoriety, especially within London politics. This previous fame, coupled with a seeming
willingness to say anything in search of publicity enabled him to receive media attention
normally reserved for major party candidates.
The decision to create an elected mayor for London and an elected local assembly had a
precedent within British politics. An elected London council (Greater London Council) existed
up until 1986, and Livingstone had been its leader from 1981 to 1986. One widely held
contention is that he was considered such a discomfort to the national government that it
abolished the council. (Economist Feb 10, 2000) This made him a folk hero to many Laborites,
and to many Londoners in general, who regarded the removal of their elected council as an act of
political vengeance by Margaret Thatcher. Disbanding the council 1986 made Livingstone a
martyr to Thatcherdom, and a natural leader for any new local government. As a result, he had
unmatched local prominence, which guaranteed attention to his campaign.
During the 1980s, Livingstone seemed to provoke controversy on a near daily basis. He
hosted a group of Sinn Fein representatives during the midst of an IRA bombing campaign and
blamed the troubles on British “colonialism” in Northern Ireland. He frequently spoke on such
disparate topics as the natural sexual orientation of human beings and the socialist argument for
enhanced bran in one’s diet. As with Ventura, Livingstone made good copy, whether it was in
Convention