John Griffiths Wins Coleman Street Ward By-Election With A Grand Total Of 59 Votes. This Sham Contest Is Indicative Of The Democratic Deficit In The City Of London

It couldn’t happen anywhere but the last rotten borough. John Griffiths, whose unhinged trolling of Castle Baynard councillors – after he lost his seat in that ward in spring 2025 – and which eventually led to him being disowned by his political ally and council leader Chris Hayward, was the winner of the 4 June 2026 by-election in Coleman Street with 59 votes. Griffiths polled 15 more votes than his nearest rival Ronnie Barker. All 8 candidates in the competition stood as ‘independents’ although at least two of them had previously stood unsuccessfully for major parties in local elections in neighbouring Tower Hamlets – including Griffiths (LibDems). In his Coleman Street election preview published the day before the contest, Andrew Teale came up with some interesting facts and figures about the ward and implied it is gerrymandered to exclude resident voters: Within the Square Mile, the right to vote is vested not just in people who live in the City but also in people who work here:…