Record turnout elects Young Mayor Landry

By Lorrayne Johnson

25 January

GCSE student Landry Adelard took 1,550 votes in an election that saw a record turnout of 50 per cent.

Landry was chosen from 15 candidates and ran on a manifesto which promised working with young people to promote anti-crime initiatives, improve GCSE results and develop community cohesion.

He said: “I am really shocked to have won. I want to thank everyone who voted for me. They’ve shown their faith in me and now I will repay that faith by representing every young person in Tower Hamlets the best I can and ensure that their voices are heard in the council. I won’t let them down.”

He added: “One of the first things I want to look at is having a safer community. Things haven’t been good recently and as a young person I believe that the younger and older people of Tower Hamlets need to work together to make life better for ourselves.”

Landry will be joined by seven new deputy Young Mayors: Jahangir Alom, Tahmina Begum, Mizanur Rahman, Zishan Ahmed, Nazrul Islam, Shah Ali Hydar and Farhan Islam.

Lead councillor for children, schools and families Abdul Asad was at the inauguration ceremony at the Town Hall last Thursday to congratulate the young people.

“It’s wonderful to see so many young people continuing to engage with democracy and the positive impact this is having in Tower Hamlets,” he said.

“The fact that each year the number of votes has increased shows just how much young people believe in the Young Mayor scheme and every year it goes from strength to strength.

“I’d like to congratulate Landry and his new deputies. I know that they will continue the good work of their predecessors and do their very best as they represent all young people in Tower Hamlets,” he told East End Life.

Also congratulating Landry and his deputies was deputy council leader Cllr Joshua Peck. “So much of what we do as a council affects young people and we need to ensure that even more of them get involved in issues about them,” he said.

“Landry and his team are here to do just that and I know they will do a sterling job.”