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UK: Labour Defeats Polanski and Greens in Seat Vacated by Starmer

Has Labour effectively fended off the Greens or is the party still going to be a threat?

2 hours ago·Updated 1 hour ago

UK: Labour Defeats Polanski and Greens in Seat Vacated by Starmer

Story

Above: Sagal Abdi-Wali after being declared the winner of the Holborn and St Pancras by-election on Oct. 9, 2026. Image credit: Jordan Pettitt/PA Images/Getty Images

The Facts

Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali won the Holborn and St Pancras by-election on Friday, retaining the party's control of the London constituency that was vacated by former Prime Minister Keir Starmer in early September.
BBC News
Reuters
Abdi-Wali, who is leader of Camden Council, secured 45% of the vote with 12,292 ballots and was trailed by Green Party leader Zack Polanski with 8,928 ballots at 33%.
BBC News
guardian
Polanski, who this week came under fire after his party passed a motion declaring Zionism as a form of racism, insisted he would remain on as Green Party leader after the defeat.
BBC News
guardian
Meanwhile, in her victory speech, Abdi-Wali, who came to the U.K. in the 1990s as a child refugee to flee the civil war in Somalia, appeared to address comments made by Reform's Zia Yusuf who attacked her candidacy on the grounds she wasn't born in the country.
guardian
ITV
The Standard
Zia Yusuf on X
"I hope this moment also says something about who gets to belong," Abdi-Wali said. "For people who look like me, I hope they see themselves reflected in this place and know that their path too belongs here. This is Camden, and this is Britain."
guardian
ITV
The election had a turnout of 38.76%. Ewan Cameron of the Conservatives came in third with 1,922 votes while Peter Newman of Reform UK finished fourth with 1,612 votes.
Camden Council

Sources Split

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RIGHT

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ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

This result is a win for new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, showing that Labour has been able to recover some public support after the leadership of Keir Starmer. While Labour still faces a significant challenge from the Greens in urban areas, this result shows they've been able to fend off the threat.

guardian

Narrative B

Labour holding onto a seat they've always won is no revelation. And while the Greens didn't win, there are still a lot of positives they can take away. The result shows they are still trending upwards and when the prime minister's honeymoon period is over, especially after the next budget and a winter of high energy bills, they will be serious contenders.