SouthAsiaNews.com

London, May 4 (DPA) Londoners, in their plucky way, have said a resounding goodbye to the era of Ken Livingstone and elected Boris Johnson as the city&#39s first-ever Conservative mayor.

&#39Hello Boris, good bye Ken,&#39 said the posters supporting the dramatic change from working class, leftist Ken to Boris, a conservative eccentric with all the trappings of a privileged upbringing.

The transition from newt-loving Ken to Boris, a cycling classics scholar, has frightened some Londoners who had wholeheartedly identified with the distinctive brand of Livingstone&#39s eight-year rule.

&#39Ken has brought people together, I fear Boris will divide Londoners,&#39 said one downcast Livingstone supporter.

But others said that Ken, the &#39formidable streetfighter,&#39 had simply been &#39overawed&#39 by Boris in the mood for change that had swept Britain after years of Labour rule in London, and at national level.

While it can be safely expected that the style and tone of office will change as Boris moves into City Hall, there is every indication that London&#39s new mayor will try his best to be a unifying figure, analysts said.

In a move underlining the close ties between London and New York, forged by Livingstone in the wake of the terrorists attacks of Sep 11, 2001, and in London four years later, Johnson took a congratulatory phone call from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whom he is due to meet in London next Friday.

&#39I&#39ll work flat out to repay and to justify your confidence. Boot me out with gusto if in four year&#39s time I haven&#39t pulled it off,&#39 Boris told voters after his election was confirmed at midnight Friday.

In a notably generous victory speech, he heaped praise on his predecessor, confirming the complete lack of animosity between the two men evident during the mayoral election campaign.

&#39You shaped the office of mayor. You gave it national prominence and when London was attacked on 7 July 2005 you spoke for London,&#39 Boris said in his tribute to Ken.

Through his &#39courage and sheer exuberant nerve&#39 Livingstone had earned the thanks and admiration of millions of Londoners, &#39even if you think that they have a funny way of showing it today&#39.

&#39And when we have that drink together which we both so richly deserve, I hope we can discover a way in which the mayoralty can continue to benefit from your transparent love of London, a city whose energy conquered the world and which now brings the world together in one city.&#39

Johnson said he did &#39not for one minute believe that this election shows that London has been transformed overnight into a Conservative city&#39, but that it would remain the &#39greatest, most cosmopolitan, multi-racial generous hearted city on earth&#39.

Livingstone, who at 62 has grown from Labour Party rebel to older statesmen, rising to the job offer, assured Boris that he would do &#39all I can to help the new administration&#39.

&#39It has been the most amazing experience and Boris, the next few years will be the best few years of your life,&#39 he said.