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Zack Polanski is facing an unexpected challenge from within his own party as he seeks to become the Green candidate for the Holborn and St Pancras by-election. Local Green councillor Hamza Chowdhury has confirmed that he is also seeking the party’s nomination, arguing that the constituency needs an MP who is regularly present in the community rather than “a politician you’ll only see on a leaflet”.
The move by Chowdhury, a Green councillor on Camden council in north London, came after the date of the by-election was officially confirmed as 8 October, following Keir Starmer’s formal resignation as the area’s MP.
The timing could also create difficulties for the Green party, as the by-election will take place only a week after its annual conference. This means the final weekend of campaigning will coincide with many party activists being in Brighton for the conference.
Chowdhury said in an Instagram post on Monday that he had received nominations from six other Camden Green councillors. If those claims are accurate, seven of the 10 Green councillors on the authority would be backing him rather than Polanski for the nomination.
One of those supporting Chowdhury is Lorna Russell, the Green group leader on Camden council. The Greens currently serve as the official opposition to Labour on the council.
Polanski, who leads the Green party in England and Wales, announced on Thursday that he would seek the nomination to contest the seat previously held by Starmer. His decision has set the stage for a potentially high-profile by-election battle with Labour.
Local Green party members are expected to vote later this week to decide their candidate. The Guardian has reported that party members are generally supportive of Polanski standing, despite the challenge from Chowdhury.
However, the level of opposition from a number of senior local Green figures is significant, particularly because Chowdhury has questioned whether Polanski, who lives in east London, could adequately represent the constituency if elected.
Chowdhury said he knew Camden through his everyday experience of living there and understood the problems faced by local residents. He highlighted issues including housing estates, broken lifts, uncollected rubbish, dirty roads and long waiting lists for social housing, saying these were challenges he had experienced in the communities where he had grown up and continued to live.
He argued that residents did not need an MP who appeared only during election campaigns, distributed leaflets and made promises before disappearing after polling day. Instead, he said, the constituency needed an MP who would remain visible, accessible and involved in the community throughout the year.
Chowdhury said he was asking Green party members to give him the opportunity to represent the constituency directly, stressing that he was already living and working in the area and could offer a permanent local presence.
Polanski, meanwhile, has defended his ability to represent the constituency despite living outside it. While canvassing in Holborn and St Pancras at the weekend, he told the Guardian that he would not move to the area even if he won the seat. Instead, he said he would regularly cycle there from his flat in Hackney.
Polanski said he could reach the constituency quickly by bicycle and would be regularly present to hold surgeries and represent local residents.
The Green leader has acknowledged that his party faces an uphill battle in a constituency that Starmer won by more than 11,000 votes at the 2024 general election. However, the Greens have already deployed large numbers of campaigners in the area, hoping to repeat the strategy that helped the party overturn a Labour majority of more than 13,000 in Greater Manchester’s Gorton and Denton in February.
