Green Party leader Zack Polanski has declared that the party's triumph in Gorton and Denton is “not the end of the story” as he sets his sights on further success at this month's Greater Manchester mayoral election. Speaking at the party's campaign manifesto launch in Hulme, Manchester, on Thursday, Polanski expressed confidence despite the scale of the challenge.
Historic By-Election Victory
In February, plumber Hannah Spencer overturned a Labour majority of 13,000 to become the constituency MP in a by-election, a result Polanski described as “seismic.” The party now hopes local councillor Geraldine Coggins can replicate that success in the mayoral race, following Andy Burnham's decision to step down as the region's mayor. Burnham retained the mayoralty in 2024 with a nearly two-thirds majority and a winning margin of more than 350,000 votes.
Acknowledging the Challenge
Polanski acknowledged the difficulty of the task, stating: “It is a huge task and I don’t think there’s any point in pretending otherwise. That’s exactly why I’m here, and so many of our members and activists are out every single day, leafleting, door knocking and getting that message across.” He drew parallels to the by-election, where many underestimated the Greens: “I look back at Gorton and Denton, so many people underestimated us, including journalists, and they said, ‘You’re not in this race, polling doesn’t look good for you.’ We always knew that we could win this. We didn’t know we were going to win it. We knew that it was certainly possible. And in the end, not only did we just win with a small majority, we won with a seismic majority.”
Manifesto Pledges
Coggins' manifesto includes free bus travel for under-22s and plans to revitalise high streets. Polanski explained: “In so many places, in the 10 boroughs across Manchester, it just feels like places are hollowed out. There’s nothing really happening and very often people don’t even know who owns the empty shops. So Geraldine is talking about bringing in an empty shops team. This is a group of people, experts, who could identify who owns the building, and then push them or encourage them to make sure that they’re using it for public good or community purpose. I think that’s really important to make sure that high streets are alive again.”
Labour Response
A Labour spokesperson criticised the Green proposals, saying: “Greater Manchester deserves a Mayor who will deliver – not a manifesto built on fantasy policy pledges and undeliverable promises. The Greens have produced a wish list full of expensive commitments but they’ve failed to explain how any of it adds up or fits within the powers and budget of the Greater Manchester Mayor. People are tired of empty headline pledges with no credible plan to pay for them, and no route to actually making them happen. Labour’s candidate Bev Craig is the only candidate with a proven track record of delivering for Greater Manchester including working closely with Andy Burnham to deliver and expand the Bee Network, building more genuinely affordable homes in the last 25 years in Manchester and building on the strongest devolution settlement anywhere in the country.”
Looking Ahead
Polanski expressed optimism about the July 30 election, stating: “I’m also clear though that was the beginning of the story and not the end of the story. And actually, on July 30 or in the preceding days – when it turns out that we have faced up to this incredible task, when Greater Manchester has a Green mayor who will go out every day, fight for a city to be more affordable, to get big money out of Manchester and make sure that she’s serving people and planet rather than private profit – I think that’s something people will be excited about.”
