Gorton and Denton MP Hannah Spencer has pledged her 'full support' for Green Party leader Zack Polanski after he was defeated in the by-election in Sir Keir Starmer's former seat yesterday (October 8).
By-election result
The Holborn and St Pancras by-election was triggered on September 1 when the former PM announced his resignation from the seat he had held since 2015. Two days later the Green party leader announced he would be standing in the by-election against other candidates including the Labour leader of Camden borough council, Sagal Abdi-Wali.
Ms Abdi-Wali was ultimately victorious in the by-election held yesterday, winning the seat with 45pc of the vote, a majority of 3,364 over Mr Polanski who came second with 33pc of the vote. But this represented a 22pc increase in vote share compared to the 2024 general election, with Labour's share down by three per cent.
Party turmoil
Since the result was announced, Mr Polanski has faced calls to quit as party leader, with some critics pointing to the party's recent 'Zionism is racism' motion passed at their party conference last weekend as to blame for a perceived turn in opinion against the party. Reporters were told that Mr Polanski was not present but on the campaign trail when the vote took place, which triggered a wave of criticisms, allegations of antisemitism and several resignations from across the party.
Yesterday's result comes towards the end of a tumultuous year for the party, which has gone from having just one MP in 2023 to four at the 2024 general election. As well as sweeping gains in the local elections in May - their biggest ever with 587 council seats won - the Greens enjoyed a decisive victory in the Gorton and Denton by-election, with Hannah Spencer snatching the former Labour stronghold with 40pc of the vote.
At the Greater Manchester mayoral elections in July, Green party candidate Geraldine Coggins came third behind Reform's Sian Astley and Labour's Bev Craig, who won with 47pc of the vote.
Spencer's support
Now, Ms Spencer has come out in support of the party leader, saying he is one of her 'closest friends'. She previously told the Manchester Evening News that she was not at the conference when the Zionism motion took place and did not vote.
"When it felt like nobody was representing people like me, he gave us a home in the Greens, and made us realise we should have a place in politics," she said in a statement.
"Hundreds of thousands have felt the same, and our membership has more than tripled under his leadership. We've also seen our biggest electoral wins to date, and forced Keir Starmer to resign. Zack has my full support."
"There's a lot to learn from last night's result, and a lot to be proud of. A year ago, we wouldn't have been in the running for a seat Labour have held for over four decades."
"Last night, we tripled our vote share while Labour lost more than 6,000 votes. And earlier this year, we beat them in one of their safest seats. We made history."
"Voters want real change, and it's up to Andy Burnham to deliver it. But with the Treasury saying it's 'business as usual', it's hard to imagine how that will happen."
"My Green colleagues and I will keep pushing Labour to tax extreme wealth, give real support to renters, bring water into public ownership, stop issuing oil and gas licenses, and demand an end to the ongoing genocide in Palestine. I look forward to the day Zack joins us in Parliament to do just that."
"Our party is here to stay. We are here to represent every single person who like me, felt let down and left behind by the other political parties."
"Unlike those parties, we aren't bankrolled by billionaires. We are powered by people. And we will continue the fight to make ordinary people's lives better."
Former Brighton Pavilion MP and former Green party leader Caroline Lucas said on X that she was 'so sorry' the campaign 'wasn't enough' but that tripling the vote share from 10pc in 2024 to 32pc was 'huge'.
"On Zack's next steps - his leadership has transformed the party," she said. "I hope he now brings the same leadership to help resolve huge issues we face & transform our internal structures."
