Polls have opened in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, where Zack Polanski is fighting to replace Sir Keir Starmer as the MP for the north London constituency. The seat has been a Labour stronghold since its formation in 1983, held by Frank Dobson for 32 years and Sir Keir for 11.
A defining moment for Polanski
The vote could be a defining moment for Mr Polanski’s leadership of the party, which has seen a surge in membership and record-breaking results in the May 2026 local elections, gaining more than 440 councillors and gaining control of five councils.
But it has been a difficult week for Mr Polanski after the Green Party passed a controversial motion at its conference in Brighton asserting that “Zionism is racism”.
Abstention and response
Mr Polanski, who abstained on the vote, later said that he will “not accept any exclusion, or refusal to engage with anyone, because of the religious or communal body they are part of”.
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