Is it the beginning of the end for Polanski?
Written by Molly Gray, Lead Photographer, BA Politics and International Relations.
Zack Polanski was elected leader of the Green Party over a year ago in September 2025. In that time, the party has tripled in size, growing from 68,000 members to over 220,000, and has had its two most successful by-elections ever. It is undeniable that the party has enormously grown, from a mere fringe movement to an important national party shifting politics across England and Wales to the left. However, this success is being correlated more and more with Keir Starmer's downfall. As Labour started to veer to the right, with Keir Starmer trying to appeal to Reform voters, many turned to the Green Party that positioned itself further to the left and was increasingly popular. It is true that part of the Green Party’s success over the last year has been due to this, but it’s hard to tell how much. Now the opposite effect is happening, as Andy Burnham takes a firmer stance to the left and saves Labour's tarnished reputation, the Greens are shrinking again. The polls are clear: as Andy Burnham’s popularity rises, Polanski’s falls.
However, the Green party has been facing other difficulties recently, culminating in Polanski’s defeat in the by-elections on 8 October. The leader of the Greens was running to replace Keir Starmer in Holborn and St Pancras but lost to the Labour candidate. Whilst the media is speculating about whether this puts into question Polanski’s leadership, the Greens still chose to view the election as a win. He came in second with 32.8%, gaining more than ten points since the last elections in 2024 when the Greens came in third with just above 10%. He said that ‘it gives us a really good foundation for the future.’ Additionally, Polanski said that part of the reason he lost was that the constituency (which is traditionally Labour) wanted to ‘give Andy Burnham a chance’ by voting Labour. The Green leader went on to say that the prime minister is still ‘in his honeymoon phase.’
In the background of the election, a controversial motion was passed at the Green Party’s annual autumn conference called ‘Zionism is Racism’. This was extremely divisive for two main reasons. The first is that some interpreted it as an antisemitic motion as it’s not calling Israel a racist state, but rather the Zionist ideology itself. The second is that it says that only a one-state solution is possible. However, many people who oppose the Palestinian genocide still believe in the possibility of a two-state solution, or at the very least that the British government shouldn’t be the one to make that decision, which is what Polanski believes. Polanski’s refusal to take a side on the issue has also created tumult. He left the conference on the day that the vote was taking place and returned to London to canvass for the by-election. This sparked accusations of cowardice.
The Jewish Greens’ leader Vivien Lichtenstein threatened to leave the party and has since called for Polanski to resign after his loss in Holborn and St Pancras. Caroline Lucas, the party’s former leader, also criticised him for not taking a side. Polanski has since said that he would not have voted for the motion as it was passed but would have voted for an amended version that didn’t explicitly ask for a one-state solution.
Polanski’s seat as leader was first under threat after he retweeted a post condemning the actions of police officers who arrested the suspect in the Golders Green stabbing in April, and reposted a photo of a man wearing a T- shirt with an image of a guillotine and the text ‘We're only making plans for Nigel’ which caused widespread uproar; Reform reported Polanski to the police for incitement to murder. Discussions followed about whether he should be running his own social media as it was clearly leading to negative press. Since the incident, Polanski’s popularity has plummeted, with polling figures yet to recover to their previous levels. What started off as a mere discussion about his role on his social media page has grown into a real questioning of his place as leader.
“The Green Party has been facing difficulties recently, culminating in Polanski’s defeat in the by-elections on the 8th of October.”
Now the question that looms is: Is it the beginning of the end for Polanski? To make a long answer short: it’s too soon to tell. However, change seems inevitable whether it is mere reform or Polanski’s resignation. There is much discussion amongst senior Green members about restructuring the party to accommodate its massive growth, and possibly making decisions differently. Yet, there are also many loud voices calling for the leader’s resignation. For the moment, Polanski assures the public that he will stay on as leader as he was voted in democratically (with more than 80%), but if his legitimacy is truly put on the line then he may have to resign nonetheless.
