On May 6, Londoners cast their vote for who they want to be Mayor of London for the next four years.

The 2021 election featured a record 20 candidates on the ballot, with Sadiq Khan seeking re-election.

Local elections also took place over the country, with early results seeing the Labour party losing their seat in Hartlepool for the very first time.

Ballots are currently being counted, but when can we expect to hear the final result?

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video

When will we know the result of the London mayoral election 2021?

While the count started on the morning of Friday, May 7, it is unlikely that results for the London mayoral election will be known until the evening of Saturday May 8 at the earliest.

A spokeswoman for London Elects, the organisation running the polls for Mayor and the London Assembly, said: ‘in the interests of staff safety, the count will take place over two days.

‘This means the mayoral result will not be announced before Saturday evening, at the earliest.’

Updates on who is leading in the count will be given before the final results are confirmed on Saturday.

Earlier today, Conservative candidate Shaun Bailey took a lead, with 40% of votes verified at the time, while incumbent, Labour’s Sadiq Khan, had 35%.

How are the London mayoral results calculated?

The Mayor of London is elected by a supplementary vote system.

This is when each voter has a chance to select a first and second choice on their ballot paper.

If a candidate receives more than half of all the first choice votes they are elected. 

If no one receives over half of the first choice votes, the top two candidates with the most first choice votes go onto a second round.

The second choice votes of everyone whose first choice has been eliminated are then counted, with votes for the remaining two candidates added to their first-round totals.

The candidate with the highest combined total of first and second choice votes wins.

Due to the sheer number of votes, all election votes in London are counted electronically.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video

For more information on how vote counting works, head on over to the London Elects website.

You can also keep up to date on all the local election results coming here.

MORE: London Mayoral Election 2021: What is the London Assembly?

MORE: Has an independent party candidate ever become the Mayor of London?

Follow Metro across our social channels, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Share your views in the comments below.

Source: Read Full Article