Polanski Vows to Stay as Green Leader After 45%-33% By-Election Loss and Zionism Row
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Oct 9
Polanski Vows to Stay as Green Leader After 45%-33% By-Election Loss and Zionism Row
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Oct 9
Summary
Zack Polanski said he would “absolutely” remain Green leader after losing Holborn and St Pancras to Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali by 45% to 33%, despite party hopes of taking Keir Starmer’s former seat.
Vivien Lichtenstein of the Jewish Greens said he should resign, calling it a “big mistake” that he dodged debate over the conference motion declaring Zionism a form of racism.
Caroline Lucas and former co-leader Jonathan Bartley also accused Polanski of a leadership failure after he missed the Brighton vote; Bartley urged him to apologize, though not quit.
Polanski said campaigning kept him from the vote and that he would have backed the “imperfect” motion only with caveats, while still endorsing its core claim that Palestinian displacement is underpinned by racist ideology.
The row has widened beyond the by-election: four of five Green MPs opposed the motion, some party figures have resigned or distanced themselves, but Polanski may still be protected by strong grassroots support until a 2027 leadership ballot.