Zack Polanski to contest Keir Starmer's former seat for the Greens

What is the news?

Zack Polanski, the leader of the Green Party, has been selected to contest the upcoming Holborn and St Pancras by-election, setting up a high-stakes battle in the seat vacated by Sir Keir Starmer.

Polanski, who also sits on the London Assembly, won a vote of local Camden Green Party members to secure the nomination. He defeated a challenge from local councillor Hamza Chowdhury, who had argued the constituency needed a local representative rather than a party leader who lives in east London.

The by-election, scheduled for 8 October, was triggered when Starmer announced his departure from Parliament to focus on international affairs. Polanski faces Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali, the leader of Camden Council and a former child refugee from Somalia who grew up in the constituency.

Why does this seat matter?

Holborn and St Pancras has been safe Labour territory since its creation in 1983, having been represented only by Frank Dobson and then Starmer. At the 2024 general election, Starmer held the seat with a majority of more than 11,000.

Polanski admits the Greens are the underdogs, but points to recent local momentum. The party increased its presence on Camden Council from one councillor to ten in May. "We might be the underdog in this election, but we have the momentum and we can win," Polanski told party members.

What are the main issues?

Polanski is framing the contest as a referendum on the environment, particularly the Labour government's reported plans to approve the Jackdaw gasfield in the North Sea. "The climate crisis is very much on the ballot in this election," Polanski said, arguing that local voters care more about the issue than the national average.

Beyond climate, the Greens are targeting cost-of-living concerns, calling for rent controls and an end to the two-child benefit cap. Polanski told Novara Media that a Green victory would force the Labour government, led by Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Chancellor John Healey, to rethink its opposition to rent controls.

Polanski also expressed concern over extreme weather linked to the El Niño phenomenon. Speaking to the Guardian, he said he was considering building a personal stockpile of food and water, following suggestions from Environment Secretary Angela Eagle that Britons should prepare for potential outages.

What happens next?

The contest will serve as an early test of public mood under Andy Burnham, who took over the Labour leadership and became Prime Minister in July.

While Green membership has tripled to more than 230,000 under Polanski's leadership, the party's national polling has slipped. According to YouGov polling, support for the Greens peaked at 21 per cent in March but dropped to 13 per cent in August following Burnham's arrival in Downing Street.

Polanski has promised that if he wins, he will contest the seat again at the next general election rather than running in a safer constituency. But first, he must navigate a short, intense campaign that overlaps with the Greens' annual conference in Brighton.