The race to become the next Lord Mayor of London has been thrown into turmoil after the frontrunner withdrew his candidacy over criminal proceedings involving someone connected to one of his former employers.
Tim Hailes, 58, an alderman of the City of London Corporation for more than 13 years, stepped aside from the mayoral election on Sunday, saying he wanted to ensure there was “no possibility of any damage to the mayoralty or the City’s reputation”.
Hailes, a former associate general counsel at JP Morgan who had been in line to become the City’s first openly gay Lord Mayor, stressed that the proceedings do not involve him and that he is not personally under investigation.
“I became aware late last week that someone closely connected to a previous employer where I was a director and shareholder is subject to criminal proceedings,” he said in a statement.
“This in no way involves me and I am not personally under investigation. But to ensure that there is no possibility of any damage to the mayoralty or the City’s reputation, I have decided to step aside at this election.
“This has not been an easy decision, but I believe it is the right course of action under the circumstances. I also hope to be considered for the mayoralty at a later date, when circumstances permit it.”
The statement did not name the person facing proceedings, nor identify which of Hailes’s former employers they are connected to. Since leaving JP Morgan in 2019, Hailes has held several corporate roles, including as general counsel at the blockchain platform Blockthree Holdings and as a solicitor at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.
Key facts: the Lord Mayor shake-up
Who withdrew: Alderman Tim Hailes, 58, the frontrunner for the 2026/27 mayoralty.
Why: someone closely connected to a previous employer is subject to criminal proceedings; Hailes says it does not involve him and he is not under investigation.
Who replaces him: Bronek Masojada, former chief executive of insurer Hiscox, originally the candidate for 2027/28.
Election date: Common Hall, Tuesday 29 September; the Lord Mayor-elect takes office on 13 November.
Outgoing mayor: Dame Susan Langley, the City’s first woman Lord Mayor.
Masojada brought forward a year
The Court of Aldermen moved swiftly to fill the vacancy. Bronek Masojada, the former chief executive of Hiscox who had been lined up for the 2027/28 term, will now be supported for election to this year’s mayoralty instead.
In a twist, the outgoing Lord Mayor Dame Susan Langley once worked under Masojada as Hiscox’s chief operating officer. Langley made history as the City’s first woman to hold the 837-year-old office.
The City of London Corporation confirmed the election arrangements will continue as planned. “The arrangements for the election of the next Lord Mayor will continue as planned, with the election taking place at Common Hall on Tuesday 29 September,” it said. “The Lord Mayor elect will be formally admitted into office on 13 November 2026.”
Hailes also posted on LinkedIn, writing: “I’m obviously hugely disappointed but this is the right thing to do in the circumstances for the mayoralty and the City about which I care so deeply.”
He added a reminder of the nature of the role: “We all sometimes forget that these roles — and those across the livery movement — are entirely unpaid voluntary public service.”
Why the Lord Mayor matters
The Lord Mayor of London — leader of the Square Mile rather than the whole capital — is one of the world’s oldest continuously elected civic offices, stretching back 837 years. The holder acts as an international ambassador for the UK’s financial and professional services sector, travelling the globe to promote the City as a place to do business.
The one-year term puts its holder in close proximity to the biggest political debates over the capital’s competitiveness, from regulation to tax. Whoever takes the chains in November inherits a City navigating post-Brexit competition, a record cost of living squeeze and an economy facing major infrastructure delays.
For Hailes, the door remains ajar. His statement made clear he hopes to be considered “at a later date, when circumstances permit it” — leaving open the possibility of a return once the shadow of the proceedings has lifted.
