UK Election 2024: In Leicester South independent Shockat Adam wants to lead anti-Labour revolt

Leicester South has been a safe seat for the Labor Party for decades. Apart from a brief Liberal Democrat interlude in 2004 and 2005, widely seen as a protest against the Iraq War, the East Midlands constituency has had a Labor MP since 1987.

For the first time in decades, that could change. Last week, a report revealed that Labor has designated Leicester South a “battleground” area and is encouraging its campaigners to campaign there.

The likely reason is an independent candidate with no previous involvement in politics: Shockat Adam, a 51-year-old local.

Adam, who, like many in the city, has Indian roots, has lived in Leicester since the age of three when his family moved from Malawi to England. “Being British is one of the things that makes me prouder than anything else,” he told MEE.

An optician by training, he has run multiple optical practices in the region and has also been involved in local Muslim community activism for years.

Often seen around town in a smart suit and tie, Adam is well-spoken and jovial on the campaign trail, regularly stopping to say hello to passers-by who recognize him.

It was Israel’s war on Gaza that encouraged him to enter politics.

The siege and bombing of Gaza following the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7 last year has clearly had a significant impact in Leicester South.

About 30% of the population is Muslim – over 30,000 people. And they come from diverse backgrounds, though mainly Gujarati Indians. Palestinian flags are everywhere. On several roads in the area, they are hung from the upstairs window of almost every house.

A large mosque in the constituency, Masjid Umar, has a Palestinian flag displayed outside the prayer hall. Street stalls raising money for Gaza are a common sight.

And in recent weeks, Adam’s face has become extremely prominent. On Evington Road, home to a dizzying array of takeaways and dessert parlours, almost every joint is displaying its campaign poster.

The Leicester South constituency also includes the main campus of the University of Leicester and is home to a large student population that is largely sympathetic to the Palestinian cause.

It’s not hard to see why the Labor high command is concerned.

“Like a kick in the teeth”

In Leicester, Britain’s most multicultural city, concern for the suffering in Gaza – and an accompanying anger at Britain’s political class – is palpable.

When it comes to Labour, there is a distinct sense of betrayal.

“I’ve never been into politics and I’ve always voted Labor and I think that’s because we follow the community and follow the crowd like sheep,” said local resident Rahima Dakri, who has lived in Leicester all her life.

“I’ve never been into politics and I’ve always voted Labor and I think that’s because we follow the community and follow the crowd like sheep”

– Rahima Dakri, local resident

It was Gaza that politicized it. “It made me sick to my stomach,” she said, “that even though the people I voted for didn’t have the power to stop certain things, to know they weren’t saying no.”

Since 2011, the constituency’s MP has been Jon Ashworth, who has been elected to the role four times. He has been a shadow minister since 2015; from 2016 to 2021 he was shadow health secretary and most recently, until the election, Ashworth was shadow paymaster general.

MEE asked Ashworth for an interview but had not received a response by the time of publication.

Many people MEE spoke to in Stoneygate, an area of ​​Leicester South, said they had voted for Ashworth at the last election. Some even campaigned for Labour.

Now I support Adam.

“I have always voted for the Labor Party and I am a paid-up member,” Mohammed Arif, general secretary of the British Pakistani Leicestershire Association, told MEE.

“To see how the Labor Party reacted when Muslims demanded, and not just Muslims but actually the general public, through marches in London and locally – when we begged the Labor Party to support a ceasefire,” the party did not he did it.

“That really hurt. It’s almost like a kick in the teeth from your own brother and family. The Labor Party was our family and unfortunately they didn’t support us when we needed them.”

Arif said he spoke to Ashworth about Gaza last year. Ashworth abstained from the vote on the Gaza ceasefire called by the Scottish National Party in parliament in November. Starmer had ordered MPs not to vote on the ceasefire, although 56 Labor MPs defied him.

Adam told MEE he decided to run for parliament in an effort to disrupt the two-party system and represent people who feel they are not being heard by the political class.

“This is my home, this is my children’s home,” he told MEE. “I like Leicester. I love this country and that’s why we need to make sure we have a voice that represents everyone.”

He said he had previously stood for Labor but was now disillusioned with the party.

“The Palestinian cause is very close to the heart of the community, but when they needed a loud, clear and distinct voice, they lacked it.

“How can we stand still when we see carnage after carnage?”

Looking for support

It is true that support for Adam appears to be particularly strong among people who care deeply about Gaza, who are mainly (though not exclusively) Muslim.

But Adam is keen not to be seen as a one-issue candidate, talking to voters about the cost of living, housing issues and NHS waiting times – an issue he says is important to him as someone who works as health professional.

Muslim voters who spoke to MEE will regularly bring up these issues, along with Gaza.

Adam is also intent on winning support from across Leicester South’s diverse community, not just Muslims.

In a popular Portuguese cafe, he gave a speech to a crowd of mostly Portuguese punters. Most of them were drinking and there was music playing in the background.

Adam spoke about celebrating multiculturalism in Leicester and opposing divisive politics. “We live in a world now where people sometimes try to tear us apart,” he told the crowd, “and that’s why it’s so important that we work together to make sure we all stay united.”

Cafe owner George, who has lived in Leicester for 33 years, told MEE he plans to vote for Adam, echoing the candidate’s comments about unity and diversity.

“I grew up with people from the Hindu community, the Sikh community, the white community, the Muslim community,” Adam told MEE.

“It will be an absolute honor for me, from Leicester, who understands the heartbeat of this city, to represent every facet of it.”

“We need a new change”

Nearby, near the popular Pak Foods store, MEE followed Adam and some volunteers as they knocked on the door.

“My team includes hundreds of people,” said Adam – all volunteers, some of them doing research late every night.

Some of the people the campaigners spoke to while knocking on the door were adamant that they knew nothing about politics, but seemed enthusiastic about Adam’s political platform.

“We need a new change,” said an elderly man, Khaled. “How simple. We have a chance and a brother who could represent us as a community. That’s what we need.”

He felt that the community electing Adam would send a message to the country at large: “Let them know that we are valuable too.”

At a fundraising event organized by local charity Humanity Without Borders, Adam received a particularly popular reception. “He’s there to take care of us,” said a cheery woman. “I think it would do some good for our community.”

A young man who introduced himself as Khalel at the event was dressed in a Spiderman mask, thobe and kuffiyeh to raise money for Gaza. “I made this costume, it’s an Arab Spiderman,” he explained.

He said he had never voted in the past but planned to vote for Adam. “No one should have to suffer anymore, and war, genocide is heartbreaking.”

Arif of the British Pakistan Association Leicestershire suggested that most local Muslims he knew planned to vote for Adam.

“Whether you’re Pakistani, Gujarati, Indian Muslim, African Muslim, Arab – that’s the feeling we have here in Leicester.”

Adam has an uphill battle ahead of him. Jon Ashworth won the 2019 election with a huge majority of over 26,000 and is likely to retain much of that support, even if he loses the votes of many Muslims and others unhappy with the direction of Labor under Keir Starmer.

The Green Party, which received 1,177 votes in 2019, is also fielding a parliamentary candidate against Ashworth, Sharmen Rahman – who was barred from a Labor parliamentary longlist in 2022 for liking tweets.

She is pro-Palestinian and also exploits the concerns that many members of the local community have, including disillusionment with work.

The party has a base of support in the city, reflected in its three council seats representing the inner-city Castle ward. However, people MEE spoke to believed Adam would get more votes.

Adam’s team insist they can win and his supporters are optimistic they can at least spoil Ashworth’s majority.

The independent’s ideal scenario is that thousands of people who have never voted before turn out for him. Voter turnout in 2019 was 67%.

MEE asked Adam why people should vote for an independent candidate rather than a party. Most politicians are restrained by their party leadership in what they say, he replied. “I answer only to the constituency.”

He said he hoped independents would win seats across the country and put pressure on a Labor government in parliament. “If they enjoy a huge majority, we need people to hold them accountable.”

Regardless of the outcome at Leicester South on July 4, this election feels distinctly different to previous years. Labor has a fight on its hands.