Electoral defeat shakes Britain's Greens and increases pressure on Polanski

Britain's Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, won a by-election on Friday for the parliamentary seat vacated by former leader Keir Starmer's resignation, overcoming strong competition from the left-wing Green Party in a result that boosts Burnham.

Labour candidate Sajal Abdi Wali, the local council leader, won the Holborn and St Pancras constituency in central London after receiving 12,292 votes, compared to 8,928 votes for Green Party leader Zack Polanski.

A Labour victory was expected, and the result will strengthen Burnham's position, who took over as prime minister with support from MPs who feared that Starmer's declining popularity would open the door for the populist Reform Party to challenge Labour in the next general election.

After Labour lost some left-wing voter support to the Greens earlier this year, the result indicates it has regained many of these voters, while also raising further questions about Polanski's leadership, who pledged to transform his party into an "environmental populist" movement.

Polanski vows to remain Green leader
Polanski, aged 43, a former actor and hypnotherapist, faced criticism after successfully attracting some Labour voters before Burnham took power, following Green members' approval at their annual conference of a motion considering Zionism a form of racism.

The motion, which called for "the establishment of one democratic Palestinian state in all of historic Palestine," drew criticism from Jewish groups, other parties, and most Green MPs. Polanski did not participate in the vote on it.

After acknowledging defeat in the fiercely contested by-election, Polanski responded to critics by saying he would remain in his post as party leader, describing the result as part of "Andy Burnham's honeymoon period."

However, he did not receive full support from former party leader Caroline Lucas, who expressed anger over what she described as his "lack of leadership" regarding the motion on Zionism, which was tabled at the party conference last week.

When asked whether Polanski should stay in his role, Lucas told the BBC: "I think we should simply see what happens in the coming days and weeks."

She added: "I want him to speak now about what happened, and I want him to show the leadership that was absent from him, frankly, on Sunday."

Winning Labour candidate Sajal Abdi Wali, who arrived in Britain as a child refugee from Somalia, said her victory represented a defeat for "those who seek to divide us," adding: "We have a responsibility to defend what we have built and hand it over to new generations."

Polanski faces critics
The by-election formed an early test for Burnham, after his predecessor Keir Starmer relinquished his parliamentary seat in September, following his ousting from the premiership in July.

Under Starmer, Labour also lost part of its base to the Greens, who achieved record gains in London during May's local elections, benefiting from expanding support among younger left-leaning voters in the capital and other urban areas.

The Greens' performance in opinion polls has declined since then, after Burnham adopted policies that strengthened Labour's position with left-wing voters, including taking a tougher stance toward Israel and adopting a more ambitious approach to relations with the European Union.

Labour Chair Bridget Philipson said the election result showed that "the message of hope carried by the party is resonating genuinely," and described the Green Party conference motion as imposing on "British Jews a standard we do not apply to others."

She added in remarks to Times Radio: "We confronted antisemitism within our ranks, but all political parties must remain constantly vigilant," referring to the controversy Labour faced regarding antisemitism within its ranks under former leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Polanski, who is Jewish, faced repeated questions after the by-election about his stance on the conference motion regarding Zionism.

The Green leader said he views the displacement of Palestinians and the "ongoing genocide" in Gaza as racist acts. Israel rejects accusations of committing "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing."

Polanski said the Greens should currently focus on whether Burnham's first budget, presented on October 28, will meet expectations.

He added in media statements: "Many people told me, while knocking on doors, that they wanted to give Andy Burnham a chance. Well, he has now got a chance. Let's see what he does with it."