Under Trump, London mayor wouldn’t be allowed in U.S. due to religion

London’s newly-elected Muslim mayor said Sunday he’d visit the U.S. before January in case Donald Trump wins the presidency.

Sadiq Khan won a contentious election Friday to become mayor of Britain’s capital and is now the most powerful elected Muslim in Europe, but might not be allowed in the U.S. under a President Trump.

“I want to go to America to meet with and engage with American mayors,” Khan told Time in an interview. “If Donald Trump becomes the president I’ll be stopped from going there by virtue of my faith, which means I can’t engage with American mayors and swap ideas.”

Presumptive Republican nominee Trump has pledged to ban Muslims from coming to the U.S., claiming they pose a national security risk and threaten more terrorist attacks.

Khan beat his Conservative Party opponent, who tried to tie him to extremism and terrorist activity, with the largest mandate ever received by a British politician. The new Labour Party mayor said his victory demonstrated that divisions between Muslims and the West will not ultimately be successful.

“What I think the election showed was that actually there is no clash of civilization between Islam and the West. I am the West, I am a Londoner, I’m British, I’m of Islamic faith, Asian origin, Pakistan heritage, so whether it’s [ISIS] or these others who want to destroy our way of life and talk about the West, they’re talking about me,” Khan said. “What better antidote to the hatred they spew than someone like me being in this position?”

Khan said he didn’t think Trump’s divisive campaign for America’s highest office would ultimately be successful.

“I’m confident that Donald Trump’s approach to politics won’t win in America,” Khan said.

This story was originally published May 9, 2016 at 1:35 PM with the headline "Under Trump, London mayor wouldn’t be allowed in U.S. due to religion."