Rory Stewart Withdraws from Race to Be London Mayor

(Bloomberg) -- Independent candidate for London Mayor Rory Stewart said on Wednesday that he will not be standing again when the delayed race resumes next year.

Stewart said the decision was partly driven by the coronavirus pandemic, and the “difficulties of keeping an independent campaign going properly for another 12 months unexpectedly,” according to a video posted on Twitter.

The former Conservative Party cabinet minister told the Evening Standard in an interview that he would not rejoin the party, and declined to endorse another candidate. Stewart previously ran to be leader in the last Tory leadership race.

The U.K. government in March delayed local elections until May next year.

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