Polanski's make-or-break moment: Polls close in Holborn by-election that could make him latest Green MP or trigger campaign to oust him as leader

Published: 17:01 EDT, 8 October 2026 | Updated: 17:34 EDT, 8 October 2026 Zack Polanski's leadership of the Greens hangs in the balance tonight as polls closed in the Holborn & St Pancras by-election. The under-pressure 'eco-populist' is standing to replace Sir Keir Starmer in the north London seat but is forecast to be defeated by Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali in the early hours of tomorrow morning.An unexpected win would make Mr Polanski the sixth Green MP in the Commons, but a defeat, especially a heavy one, will trigger fresh questions about the direction he has taken the party.The party enjoyed a surge in the polls earlier this year but has seen itself slip backwards after a series of gaffes and the emergence of Andy Burnham as Labour leader. Mr Polanski is reeling from the row over a vote at its annual conference in Brighton last weekend which made it policy to regard Zionism as racism and demand the destruction of Israel. Amid the furore he skipped the Zionism vote – and most of the conference itself – to concentrate on his personal campaign in Holborn. But it is the latest of several controversies the Greens have been mired in since the former actor and hypnotist took over in September last year, taking it further to the Left and away from its ecological roots. After the polls closed, a Conservative spokesman said: 'If Zack Polanski fails to win this by-election, it will surely be curtains for his leadership of the party. 'We hope it also marks the end of the Green Party's sorry embrace of anti-Semitism.' The under-pressure 'eco-populist' is standing to replace Sir Keir Starmer in the north London seat but is forecast to be defeated by Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali in the early hours An unexpected win would make Mr Polanski the sixth Green MP in the Commons, but a defeat, especially a heavy one, will trigger fresh questions about the direction he has taken the party Ms Abdi-Wali is the bookies' favourite, with confidence growing inside the party that the Camden councillor will clinch victory.The Greens tonight suggested that just being the main challenger to Labour was an achievement.Mr Polanski wrote on social media: 'The Green Party got 10 per cent last time. 'Whatever happens tonight - we made Labour work like they never have before. I'm so proud of you all.'The Green leader had been appealing for help from activists as residents cast their ballots in the contest for Sir Keir Starmer's old seat.Ms Abdi-Wali is the bookies' favourite, with confidence growing inside the party that the Camden councillor will clinch victory. But Mr Polanski insisted on social media overnight that he 'can win', claiming there might be just a 'few hundred votes in it'.He pointed to a projection from Poll Check suggesting Labour could get 40.4 per cent of the vote and the Greens 35.6 per cent. Defeat for Mr Polanski would underline how Mr Burnham's arrival has flattened the Green surge – which saw them scoop Gorton & Denton in a by-election in February and then secure record-breaking local council results in May.Holborn & St Pancras has been a Labour stronghold since its formation in 1983, held by Frank Dobson for 32 years and Sir Keir for 11.There are 13 other candidates in the by-election, including the Conservatives' Ewan Cameron, Reform UK's Peter Newman and the Liberal Democrats' Patrick Thomas Stillman.Also running is George Galloway of the Workers Party of Britain, despite living overseas in what he describes as 'self-exile'.Sir Keir won the Holborn and St Pancras seat in 2024 with 48.9 per cent of the vote (18,884 votes), with independent Andrew Feinstein as runner-up on 18.9 per cent (7,312 votes) and the Greens in third with 10.4 per cent of the vote (4,030 votes).