Labour holds former prime minister’s seat as Greens fall short in UK special election

New Prime Minister Andy Burnham is seeking to recover voters with a shift to the left, as the Greens hit a check on their hopes to turn surging membership into a parliamentary breakthrough.MANCHESTER, England (CN) — Britain’s Labour Party held former Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s parliamentary seat Thursday, defeating Green Party leader Zack Polanski in a special election that tested whether the surging left-wing party could deliver a breakthrough in Parliament.Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali won 12,292 votes, or 45% of the total, in central London’s Holborn and St. Pancras.Polanski finished second with 8,928 votes, or 33%, as the Greens increased their share by 22% compared with the 2024 general election.The result leaves Polanski outside Parliament and gives Labour a win in a constituency it has held since the late 1970s.Turnout was 38.76%, down from the general election in 2024, when Starmer won the seat before becoming prime minister.The Greens have expanded rapidly under Polanski.Party membership more than tripled, from 68,000 to about 220,000 by May, and the party won a special election in February to bring its number of lawmakers in Parliament to five.Strong national polling had raised expectations that the party could challenge Labour in one of its longtime London strongholds.Abdi-Wali thanked voters and her fellow candidates after the result, saying standing for public office “takes courage” and pledging to represent the entire community, including those who did not vote for her.She said homelessness had drawn her into politics and that she wanted to work with Prime Minister Andy Burnham, also of Labour, to “tackle rough sleeping while addressing the wider housing crisis.”She also called for Thames Water, one of Britain’s major water companies, to be brought into public ownership.Labour’s battle with Greens over the leftPolanski said he would remain Green leader despite the defeat, arguing the movement was bigger than a single election.“We are going to build and we are going to grow,” he said, pointing to the large increase in Green votes since the seat was last contested.He also suggested Labour’s prospects had benefited since Burnham took office.“So many people told me on the doorsteps that they want to give Andy Burnham a chance,” Polanski said. “Well he’s got a chance now, let’s see what he does with it.”Burnham has sought to shift the government toward a more left-wing platform, promising greater public ownership, expanded social care and a tougher stance on Israel, including a ban on imports from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.Labour’s standing in national polls has also improved, outpacing the far-right Reform UK party, which had consistently topped polls over the past year.The shift has prompted discussion of a “Burnham bounce,” with Labour potentially winning back voters who had moved toward the Greens.Thursday’s result offers Labour encouragement.Polanski faces questions over party directionPolanski also faced questions about a divisive motion passed at the Green Party’s conference over the weekend.The motion described Zionism as racism and called for a single state in historic Palestine, prompting criticism from some members, including former Green leader Caroline Lucas.Polanski, who is Jewish, said he would have voted against the motion and wanted amendments to remove the call for a single Palestinian state.The motion leaves Polanski leading a party whose official position he disagrees with.He was also asked about Lubna Speitan, a Green Party member linked to the motion who is named in U.S. court documents as a “close friend” of a man connected to al-Qaida and was sentenced to 44 years in prison for terrorism offenses, including a plan involving a suicide attack at London’s Heathrow Airport.Polanski said he had not previously been aware of the information and that the party had launched an investigation.The election defeat leaves Polanski without a seat in Parliament as he attempts to maintain the Greens’ recent growth while addressing internal divisions over the party’s position on Israel and Palestine.Courthouse News reporter James Francis Whitehead is based in England.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads