Zack Polanski loses Holborn and St Pancras by-election as Green Party faces policy row

Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali, the leader of the local council, won the seat in the central London constituency of Holborn and St Pancras with 12,292 votes, compared with 8,928 for Zack Polanski.

Green Party candidate, Zack Polanski, listens the Labour Party candidate, Sagal Abdi-Wali, acceptance speech after her victory in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election on October 9, 2026 in London, England. Zack Polanski was torn apart by the BBC’sNick Robinson after he missed the Green Party members voted to adopt a divisive “Zionism is racism” motion as official policy. The party now defines Zionism as a “political ideology which called for the creation – and now it exists, the continuity – of an ethnonationlist Jewish State in historic Palestine to the exclusion and/or domination of the non Jewish population.”Activists at the Green conference in Brighton last Sunday voted 1,022 to 813 in favour of the controversial motion, which saw the party being branded “racist”.Polanski abstained from the debate and the vote to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, a move which has since been slammed by former Green leader Caroline Lucas.She refused to say whether Polanski should stay on or step down, telling BBC Newsnight: “He should have been there and he should have voted.”The Green leader lost the by-election overnight to Labour, casting fresh doubt on his political future – though he insists he will stay on in his post.On the BBC’s Radio 4’s Today programme, presenter Nick Robinson said: “Presented with a highly controversial motion, about whether the existence of Israel was itself racist, you dodged it. You didn’t turn up and you didn’t express a view.”He added: “If you wanted to be at a motion in your own conference, of course you could be there. Don’t insult the intelligence of people listening.”Polanski said he tried to postpone the conference so he could focus on campaigning.Robinson cut in: “Would you have voted against it?”Polanski, who says he grew up in a “Zionist household”, said he wanted to amend the motion, so he would have voted against it because “aspects of it are not OK” like demanding a single state solution.He said: “It’s certainly not up to the Green Party of England and Wales at a Brighton conference to decide what the future of the region looks like.”“This is a question you have always dodged.” Robinson replied. “Will you now say that you think there ought to be a safe home for Jews in a state called Israel, the state created by the UN?”“I believe Israelis and Palestinians should have equal rights in a democracy,” the London Assembly member said.Robinson asked him three times why he is avoiding the question, to which Polanski said: “I don’t believe any state has the right to inflict apartheid, certainly not genocide on another people.”He added that his role and the government’s is to “uphold international law”.Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Labour Beat The Greens To Win Holborn And St Pancras By-Election In Blow For Zack PolanskiFormer Green Party Leader Slams Zack Polanski For Dodging 'Zionism Is Racism' VoteCrunch Time For Zack Polanski As Greens Descend Into Chaos

The Green Party leader speaks to BBC Breakfast after he lost the Holborn and St Pancras by-election.

COMMENTARY: Green Party leader Mr Polanski has weeks, if not days, to show he can deliver leadership on highly divisive issues

Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali, who retained the seat for Labour after former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer stepped down.

The Party leader had a meteoric rise, but now a bruising by-election loss and internal division threaten to end his leadership

The Green Party leader faced a bruising defeat in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election

Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali, who retained the seat for Labour after former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer stepped down.

The Green leader faces pressure over his response to a party motion declaring Zionism a form of racism, as well as his by-election loss.

Green Party leader says "of course I can carry on" after losing to Labour Party in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election.

Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali, who retained the seat for Labour after former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer stepped down.

BBC Political editor Chris Mason discusses the by-election outcome and what it means for the Greens Party.

Former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas.A former leader of the Greens has condemned Zack Polanski for dodging a vote which saw the party’s members declare “Zionism is racism”.Caroline Lucas refused to say whether or not he should stand down as party leader.Activists at the Green conference in Brighton last Sunday voted 1,022 to 813 in favour of the controversial motion, which saw the party being branded “racist”.But rather than take part in the vote, or the debate which preceded it, Polanski instead chose to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election.Appearing on the BBC’s Newsnight programme, Lucas – who led the Greens from 2016 until 2018 – said: “He should have been there and he should have voted.”The former Brighton Pavillion MP also criticised Polanski for not publicly opposing the motion, which she said was “flawed from top to bottom”.She said: “It’s dangerous, it’s divisive, it tries to have a singular definition of Zionism when we know that there are many.”Zionism is the belief that Jewish people should have their own homeland.Asked if Polanski should quit as leader, Lucas said: “I think let’s just see what happens in the next, in the coming days and weeks. I mean, obviously he has been completely taken up with this by-election.“I want him to speak now about what’s happened. I want him to show the leadership that was frankly missing on Sunday. I think the jury is out about whether or not he will do that, but I very much hope he will.“I’ve been very clear that I think it was a mistake not to show leadership on this and I think that it was mistake not be there to vote.”"I think let's just see what happens in the coming days and weeks"Former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas on whether Zack Polanski should stand down as leader of the party in England and Wales.#Newsnightpic.twitter.com/zcqec6u2H2— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 8, 2026Last Sunday’s vote has triggered a furious backlash against the Greens from Jewish groups and rival parties.Rabbi Charley Baginsky and Rabbi Josh Levy, co-leads of The Movement for Progressive Judaism, said: “The motion is anti-semitic in its formulation and intention. By adopting it, the Green Party has made anti-semitism party policy and become a racist party.“Jewish self-determination is a right. Declaring it racist is an attack on Jews.”Polanski himself has refused to say whether he supported the motion, saying he supported an amendment to it which would have provided safeguards for Jews who attend Zionist synagogues. However, that amendment was defeated.Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Crunch Time For Zack Polanski As Greens Descend Into ChaosFormer Green Leader Suggests He Could Quit Party Over 'Zionism Is Racism' MotionZack Polanski Makes Last-Ditch Plea To Voters As Polls Open In Crunch By-Election

Green Party leader Zack Polanski addresses delegates on the main stage at the Brighton Centre during the party's annual conference. Barely a year after taking charge, Zack Polanski faces his biggest challenge as Green Party leader.The party is currently dealing with the international fallout after its members voted in favour of adopting a divisive motion declaring “Zionism is racism” at their conference in Brighton last Sunday.Though four of the party’s five MPs publicly opposed the proposal, and even Polanski himself didn’t vote for it, the democratic nature of the Greens means it is now official party policy.The proposal has already ostracised the Green Party of England and Wales, with the European Green Party among the organisations to condemn the move.Meanwhile, Jewish groups are calling the motion outright “racist” and anti-semitic.There are also serious question marks over whether or not the Greens could play any part at all in a Labour-led coalition in the event of a hung parliament.Israel has also banned leader Polanski, who is Jewish, from ever entering the country, prompting the party to hit back by insisting it will not be “bullied” by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.So where was Polanski when Green Party members voted on the motion last Sunday?He was fighting for his political life, door-knocking ahead of today’s Holborn and St Pancras by-election.Currently a London Assembly member, the Green Party leader has taken a huge political gamble by deciding to run in Keir Starmer’s former seat, which Labour has held since it was formed in 1983.There is no denying that Polanski has transformed his party over the last year, taking it from the fringes of British politics to the mainstream and quadrupling its membership.In February, Hannah Spencer became the first Green MP to be elected at a by-election when she beat both Reform and Labour to win in Gorton and Denton.But the Greens have been in steady decline in recent months, engulfed in rows over Polanski’s social media posts and criticism that the party is now too focused on left-wing politics rather than the environment.Polanski’s decision to run in the by-election was already high-risk, but the timing of the crunch vote has put intense pressure on his leadership.He even tried to change the date of the Greens’ conference moved so he could focus on his by-election campaign, only for the party’s executive body to reject his plea.The “Zionism is racism” motion now threatens to throw his precarious bid to get into the Commons completely off-course.If Polanski wins the seat, it will be an enormous boost for the party – and for his leadership.But if he loses, it will be a devastating blow for his political ambitions and is sure to raise questions about whether or not he will face a leadership challenge.Listen to this week’s Commons People as we unpack what’s on the line for the Green Party – and Polanski. Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Exclusive: Greens Say They Will Not Be 'Bullied' After Israel Bans Zack PolanskiGreens Branded 'A Racist Party' After Passing Anti-Zionism MotionGreen Splits Erupt As Former Leaders Condemn 'Zionism Is Racism' Motion