The governing Labour Party has held on to Holborn and St Pancras after Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali fended off an aggressive challenge from Green Party leader Zack Polanski in a closely watched parliamentary by-election. The victory offers a major sigh of relief to Prime Minister Andy Burnham, securing Labour's hold on the north London constituency vacated by former prime minister Keir Starmer in his first significant ballot-box test since entering Downing Street[3] [4].
Abdi-Wali secured 12,292 votes, amounting to 45.1 percent of the total ballots cast, while Polanski took 8,928 votes or 32.8 percent, according to official declarations verified by Camden Council. Conservative candidate Ewan Cameron finished a distant third with 1,922 votes (7.1 percent), while Reform UK representative Pete Newman collected 1,612 votes (5.9 percent). Constituents cast their ballots on Thursday, with overall turnout tumbling to 38.8 percent, down sharply from the 54 percent recorded during the 2024 general election.
An Emotional Victory Amid Divisive Rhetoric
Abdi-Wali, who arrived in the United Kingdom during the 1990s as a child refugee from Somalia and later rose to head Camden Council, framed the outcome as an explicit endorsement of multicultural democracy. Her campaign had faced inflammatory online attacks from opponents, notably Reform UK home affairs spokesperson Zia Yusuf, who publicly attacked her background after the by-election was called[8].
Speaking from the count at Camden Town Hall, Abdi-Wali directly addressed the tone of the race and the broader questions surrounding identity in modern British politics.
I hope this moment also says something about who gets to belong, 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.
Sagal Abdi-Wali, Member of Parliament for Holborn and St Pancras
Abdi-Wali added on stage that Camden's diversity represents its fundamental strength and that community cohesion had been "too hard won to take for granted," as reported by ITV News and The Guardian. Her swearing-in as an MP will take place when the House of Commons returns from recess.
How the Parties Fared in Central London
While Labour celebrated holding a stronghold it has controlled since 1983, the contest revealed shifts across the local political terrain. The Green Party tripled its vote share compared to the 2024 general election, absorbing much of the left-wing vote previously captured by independent challenger Andrew Feinstein, who did not contest this race[6].
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Vote Share | Change vs 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sagal Abdi-Wali | Labour | 12,292 | 45.1% | -3.8 pp |
| Zack Polanski | Green | 8,928 | 32.8% | +22.4 pp |
| Ewan Cameron | Conservative | 1,922 | 7.1% | -0.1 pp |
| Pete Newman | Reform UK | 1,612 | 5.9% | -0.2 pp |
As the figures compiled by the Press Association demonstrate, Labour experienced a modest dip in vote share while the Greens surged by more than 22 percentage points, narrowing the final margin to roughly 12 points.
Polanski Vows to Stay on After Bruising Week
For Zack Polanski, the result was a bitter personal disappointment after he staked significant personal capital on entering Westminster. Polanski had urged Green activists to skip their annual autumn party conference in Brighton to canvass north London streets instead. However, his campaign was shadowed during its final stretch by bitter controversies arising from that same conference, where Green delegates passed a resolution declaring Zionism a form of racism, prompting intense internal fallout and accusations of antisemitism that dominated national headlines[3] [5].
Labour strategists took the challenge seriously, drawing on financial backing from prominent environmental industrialist Dale Vince, who donated £50,000 to Labour's defence fund to help defeat Polanski, as first revealed by The i Paper. Despite falling short, Polanski told the Press Association that he intends to remain leader of the Green Party, arguing that the substantial swing proved the party remains a potent force holding Labour to account.
Former Green Party leader Natalie Bennett defended Polanski's tenure in an interview with Left Foot Forward, stating that Green leaders are elected on two-year mandates by the grassroots membership and were never in danger of an automatic ouster over a single by-election loss.[10]
Burnham Clears First Big Electoral Hurdle
The Financial Times noted that the by-election outcome provides early stability to Andy Burnham's premiership. Downing Street had faced private anxieties that a loss in Starmer's former constituency would shatter the party's authority and accelerate an exodus of progressive urban voters to the Greens.
Nevertheless, independent analysts, including polling expert Sir John Curtice, pointed out that the turnout drop to under 39 percent highlights lingering voter disengagement and economic exhaustion in metropolitan seats. While Burnham successfully preserved the government's north London bastion, the Green Party's ability to pull nearly a third of the electorate ensures that pressure from Labour's left flank will remain an enduring fixture of this parliament.[6]
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Holborn and St Pancras by-election tests Burnham as Labour and Greens battle →