Londoners will find out later today if they have elected the first Muslim mayor of any major Western city, after an unusually bitter campaign in which race and religion have proven ugly flashpoints.

The race between Labour’s Sadiq Khan, son of a bus driver, and Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith, son of a billionaire, has seen the latter accused of peddling “vile race politics” in his campaign against his rival.

Khan, a 45-year-old lawyer and member of Parliament, is the London-born son of Pakistani immigrants, and a practicing Muslim in a city where his co-religionists comprise about 12% of the population.

Elections were held across the United Kingdom on Thursday, for mayoral positions, local council seats, and parliamentary and assembly seats in Scotland and Wales.

The Scottish National Party – which campaigned for Scotland to leave the UK in 2014 – won more Scottish Parliament seats than any other party, but failed to secure an outright majority. Labour plunged to third, behind the Conservatives – a result that would have seemed unimaginable several years ago in the former Labour stronghold.

•Credit (except headline): CNN. Photo shows potential London Mayor Sadiq Khan.