Liberal Democrat Candidate For Mayor of London Election 2008
In August 2006 it was reported by The Observer's "Pendennis" column that Paddick was considering seeking selection as the Liberal Democrats' candidate for Mayor of London in the mayoral elections to be held in 2008. This was confirmed a year later by the BBC. He received an endorsement from Lynne Featherstone MP, a former member of the London Assembly, on her blog.
On 2 September 2007, Paddick informed Pink News of some of his priorities if elected mayor. On illegal drugs, he reiterated that they are "dangerous and harmful and it is better if people live without them", but that he had a "realistic approach" to enforcement and would not be afraid of adopting a "radical solution if it's fully thought through, if it's workable, affordable and gets the right result". He promised to regulate the timings of London's buses and to apply the London congestion charge in a more sophisticated manner that differentiated wealthy chauffeur-driven chief executives from delivery drivers. As regards the 2012 Summer Olympics to be held in London, he pledged to ensure that "the best possible show" would be staged with "value for money for every single pound spent". In addition, in a leaflet released on his campaign website on 10 September, he pledged to "put more police officers, fully trained, equipped and with the necessary powers out on the street, dealing with violent gun and knife crime", to take the lead in tackling climate change and minimising the impact on the environment by powering the London Underground with renewable energy, and to provide the right environment for business without interfering in businesses.
On 13 November 2007 it was announced that Paddick had been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London. He won 73% of the first preference votes during the selection contest. Paddick joined, among others, Ken Livingstone as the Labour candidate and Conservative Party candidate Boris Johnson. However, a poll conducted by The Guardian and ICM published on 3 April 2008 found that Paddick was the first choice of only 10% of voters. He therefore had little chance of winning, as 42% supported Johnson and 41% Livingstone. The poll was borne out by the results of the elections on 1 May 2008. On 3 May it was announced that Boris Johnson had been elected. Paddick was in third place behind Ken Livingstone, with 9.8% (236,685 out of 2,415,958) of the first preference votes.
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