Green Party leader Zack Polanski will stand to become an MP in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election after Sir Keir Starmer quit parliament.
Polanski, who is currently a London Assembly member, is solidly backed by Green Party members to stand as the party’s candidate in what has historically been considered as a Labour safe seat, according to reports.
He announced his intention to stand in an interview with the local newspaper Camden New Journal.
“I have lived and worked in this community over many years, I know it well and I love it,” he said.
“It represents so many of the things that make London so special. I am so excited by the prospect of representing this place in Parliament.
“Holborn and St Pancras has everything that’s the best of our country and so much potential.”
He also added that voters would have someone “who will always fight their corner” and accused Labour of backing “corporations and big money”.
This announcement piles pressure on Labour to put up a candidate that can defeat the high-profile yet controversial Green Party leader.
In the last election in 2024, Starmer won reelection with a reduced vote share. The leftist activist Andrew Feinstein won just under 19 per cent of the vote share while the Greens got 10.4 per cent. This compared to about 49 per cent for the former Prime Minister and Labour leader.
A Labour councillor, Sagal Abdi-Wali, is the frontrunner to stand for Labour, according to the Telegraph.
Polanski’s ratings have dropped
Polanski’s approval ratings have fallen in the latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy polling to -24 compared to a net score of 12 for Andy Burnham, -20 for Nigel Farage and four for Kemi Badenoch.
The Manchester-born leader was previously on a high of minus one.
The party’s own ratings have fallen back, with Andy Burnham’s rise to Number 10 allowing Labour to regain support. The Greens currently have 10 per cent of the vote share compared to 23 per cent for Labour and 26 per cent for Reform UK.
The Green Party leader has come under fire in recent months over issues relating to council tax, sharing a picture of a man calling for Farage’s death, claiming to be a Red Cross spokesman and criticising the Metropolitan Police in its response to an attack on Jewish people in Golders Green.