Four Nigerians in race for re-election into House of Commons

Chuka Harrison Umunna is a British Labour Party politician who has served Streatham as Member of Parliament since 2010. Umunna, 36, has been the Shadow Business Secretary since 2011. Born in Streatham on October 17, 1978, was born to Bennett and Patricia Umunna. He graduated from the Nottingham Trent University in 2002.

The chances of four Nigerians vying for seats in the House of Commons dominated discussions among their compatriots resident in the United Kingdom (UK), as the British went to the poll to elect a new Prime Minister yesterday.

Those contesting are: Chuka Umunna, Chi Onwurah, Kate Osamor and Helen Grant.

Umunna, who is the current Shadow Business Secretary, is vying to represent Streatham, a constituency seen as a Labour Party (LP) stronghold and Onwurah, a current Labour Member of Parliament (MP), who is seeking reelection from Newcastle.

Osamor, a serving MP is seeking reelection from Edmonton and Grant, a British-Nigerian MP and a member of the Conservative Party, who is seeking reelection from Maidstone and Weald constituency in Kent.

Reports said none of the quartet has a formidable opposition they are contesting safe seats.


Umunna is one of the rising stars of the LP and commands a lot of respect from his party and residents in his constituency. “Chuka is not likely to have problems being re-elected because his constituency is a Labour stronghold”, Sunday Olanipekun, who has lived in the UK for 14 years as an ardent Labour supporter said.

He went on: “Apart from that, many of the members see him as a potential leader of the party in the future and so will do everything to make him get re-elected.”

Besides, the predominance of large minority groups in their neighbourhood has been identified as of the factors that will work in favour of the Nigerians, who may likely benefit from bloc votes.

Another Nigerians, Mr. Olawale Olagunju, said: “We need to understand that most voters here vote in line with party affiliation and do not really care about the candidates. Unlike other climes where candidates determine the outcomes of elections, people vote for parties in the UK.”

Olagunju, who did not rule out the likelihood of other British-Nigerians contesting under smaller parties, identified the quartet as the ones that are of utmost concern to Nigerians in the UK.

He said many Nigerians hold top political positions in the country too.