Reform UK has put forward a new face for London's future, and she is already stirring up quite a conversation. On Wednesday, Nigel Farage announced Laila Cunningham as the party's candidate for the 2028 London mayoral election, positioning her as Reform's answer to Sadiq Khan or Labour's eventual nominee.
Her rise has been swift, controversial, and closely tied to her uncompromising stance on crime, policing, and what she says is the decline of the capital.
Who is Laila Cunningham?
Laila Cunningham, formerly known as Laila Dupuy, was born at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington and raised in London. She is of Egyptian heritage and a practising Muslim, and has spoken openly about growing up in a politically charged household, shaped by a staunchly Conservative mother.
Before entering frontline politics, Cunningham built a career as a lawyer with the Crown Prosecution Service, working primarily on criminal cases in magistrates' courts. She later stepped into local politics, standing unsuccessfully for Westminster City Council in 2018 before winning a seat in 2022 as a Conservative councillor.
She is also a mother of seven, a fact she frequently references when discussing crime and safety. Her reputation as a 'vigilante mum' stems from her claims that she personally tracked down and confronted people who targeted her children, citing a lack of effective policing.
Breaking with the Conservatives
Cunningham's political trajectory shifted in June 2025, when she defected from the Conservatives to Reform UK. At the time, she said she was 'tired of defending failure,' accusing both the Tories and Labour of letting London down on crime, immigration, taxation, and public spending.
Her defection made her Reform UK's first councillor in a London borough and quickly elevated her profile within the party. Shortly afterwards, she resigned from the CPS after making highly politicised public comments, which conflicted with the service's rules on impartiality for prosecutors.
Since joining Reform, Cunningham has become a regular media presence, sharply criticising Labour's record on crime and positioning herself as a blunt, law-and-order voice. She also co-founded Women for Reform in 2025, aimed at broadening the party's appeal to female voters.
Farage Taps Laila Cunningham for London Mayor Run
According to Farage, Cunningham would now lead Reform UK London and act as the public face of its campaign across the capital.
'Laila Cunningham has already proven in her time with us as a party to be articulate, to be passionate, a mother, somebody who actually herself has had to effectively in the absence of the police, act as a police officer herself in defence of her children,' Farage said.
Cunningham framed the mayoral race as a direct challenge to Labour. Speaking at the launch, she said, 'London, one of the greatest cities on earth, is no longer safe, and that didn't happen by accident.'
Cunningham said crime would be her central focus if elected. 'There'll be a new sheriff in town and I'll be launching an all-out war on crime,' she said, pledging to rewrite the capital's police and crime plan and give the Metropolitan Police 'new marching orders.'
She also said she would scrap the Ultra Low Emission Zone, adding, 'I'd scrap Ulez, because I don't think a war on motorists helps anyone.' Her comments and selection have drawn mixed reactions, with supporters praising her blunt approach and critics accusing Reform of courting controversy.
