Britainupdated 30m ago2 min read
Sagal Abdi-Wali Wins Holborn And St Pancras By-Election, Defeating Zack Polanski
Sagal Abdi-Wali elected Labour MP for Holborn and St Pancras, defeating Green's Zack Polanski. Labour holds the seat previously held by Keir Starmer.
Labour holds Holborn seat
Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali won the Holborn and St Pancras by-election on Thursday, defeating Green Party leader Zack Polanski in central London. Abdi-Wali, the Camden Council leader, told BBC London just after her victory was declared that voters were "looking for hope". The result was announced just after 03:00 BST on Friday at Camden's modern office complex in King's Cross, with turnout at 38.6%.
“‘It is clear now we will come a close second in this by-election.”
The UK Green Party conceded defeat and its spokesperson told the BBC, "It is clear now we will come a close second in this by-election." The constituency became vacant after former Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced last month that he would step down as a member of parliament.
Greens vow to stay
Zack Polanski told journalists after the count that "no-one runs an election to lose" but that voters wanted to give new prime minister "a chance." Polanski also said, "of course" he can carry on as Green Party leader, and he added that people on the doorstep wanted to give Andy Burnham a chance. The Green Party would continue pressing the Labour government on affordable housing, public ownership of water and climate change.
Polanski pledged to remain as leader, and turnout at 38.6% was lower than the 2024 general election when 54% of voters cast a ballot. The Greens did triple their vote share from the general election when they won 10%, while Labour won 45% of the vote on compared with 49% for Sir Keir in 2024.
What the result means
Labour won 45% of the vote on, compared to 49% for Sir Keir in 2024, and the Conservatives came in third, beating Reform UK in an English by-election during this Parliament. The elections decided Starmer’s successor and described the by-election as the first held with Starmer’s successor, Andy Burnham, as prime minister. The Green Party’s weekend motion declared themselves an "anti-Zionist party" and stated that that ideology was "racist."
Polanski, who did not vote, answered critics by saying he would stay on as leader and described the result as part of "Andy Burnham's honeymoon." The Government of Israel banned the entry into the country of Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, on grounds of "antisemitism."