All eyes are now on Respect which pushed for the referendum for the mayoral election.

The party is due to decide whether to run a candidate and who it might be at a meeting in the next few days.

Former Bethnal Green and Bow MP George Galloway has not ruled himself out but earlier in the campaign he said he would only run if his former rival Labour’s Oona King contested the job.

She has her sights on running as mayor but of London, rather than Tower Hamlets.

Mr Galloway is due back in the UK on Friday, the same date as the deadline for nominations.

Other candidates could be Mr Galloway’s constituency aide Rob Hoveman, former Tower Hamlets party leader Abjol Miah who contested the Bethnal Green and Bow seat in the May General Election and Bodrul Islam, the young groom at the centre of a row when Jim Fitzpatrick walked out of his wedding.

A Respect spokesman said the party would discuss whether to field a candidate and who it should be at its gathering this week.

He added if the party put up a candidate it would be a strong candidate with a good chance of winning the top job.