Voters in Holborn and St Pancras headed to polling stations on Thursday, October 8, 2026, to elect a new Member of Parliament in a by-election that has become one of the most closely watched political contests in Britain this year. The race pits the governing Labour Party against Green Party leader Zack Polanski in the former seat of Keir Starmer, and it doubles as the first electoral test for Prime Minister Andy Burnham since he succeeded Starmer in July.
Fifteen candidates are contesting the seat, but the contest is widely seen as a two-horse race between Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali and the Greens' Polanski, Al Jazeera reported.
Table of Contents
- A Seat Labour Has Held Since 1983
- Polanski's Gamble: A Party Leader on the Ballot
- Gaza and the Zionism Row
- Burnham's First Test
- Key Takeaways
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Sources
- Read Next on Chronicle
A Seat Labour Has Held Since 1983
Labour has held the Holborn and St Pancras seat continuously since the constituency was created in 1983. Keir Starmer was elected there in 2015 and represented it until his resignation triggered this by-election. That history makes it a fortress seat for Labour — yet the party cannot afford to be complacent. After the Greens swept to control of three London boroughs in local elections in May and won the Gorton and Denton by-election, the contest in north London carries genuine jeopardy.
Polling by Electoral Calculus, cited by Polanski's own campaign, put Labour on 52% and the Greens on 48% — a remarkably narrow margin for a seat Labour once won by default.
Polanski's Gamble: A Party Leader on the Ballot
It is unusual for a national party leader to stand in a by-election, and Polanski's candidacy is a high-stakes gamble. The 43-year-old former actor and hypnotherapist became Green Party leader in September 2025 and has since moved the party sharply leftward, fuelling a surge in membership. A defeat in his own contest would be a personal blow; a win would give the Greens a sixth seat in Parliament — their highest tally ever — and cement his strategy.
The Green leader's message to voters has been blunt: another Labour MP changes nothing, but a Green voice in Parliament keeps Labour in check. "Vote Green and watch Labour move," he told his party's conference in Brighton, pointing to the government's recent delay on new oil and gas drilling at Rosebank and Jackdaw as evidence that Green pressure already shapes government decisions.
Gaza and the Zionism Row
Gaza has dominated the campaign. Polanski's Greens have courted pro-Palestinian voters aggressively, accusing Labour councillors of failing to stand firmly on Palestine. Green leaflets in the constituency have charged that "every single Camden Labour councillor refused to sign the Palestine solidarity pledge," a claim Labour's candidate has pushed back on.
The campaign has also been shadowed by a row at the Green Party conference last weekend, where members voted to define Zionism as racism and backed a "single democratic Palestinian state in all of historic Palestine." Polanski declined to set out his own view on the motion and left the conference early to campaign, drawing accusations of "cowardice" from opposition MPs. The vote, and the divisions it exposed between the Greens' eco-roots and an influx of pro-Palestine activists, has plainly cost the party some support in north London.
Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali, who arrived in Britain as a child refugee from Somalia in the 1990s and now leads Camden council, has positioned herself as the candidate of hope and competence — and she is the bookmakers' favourite, with the result expected in the early hours of Friday.
Burnham's First Test
The by-election is also the first ballot-box judgment on Andy Burnham's premiership. Burnham, who succeeded the more centrist Starmer as prime minister in July, has adopted a tougher stance on Israel and laid out a more left-wing vision for Britain in an explicit bid to blunt the Greens' rise. A comfortable Labour hold would validate that strategy; a narrow scare — or worse, a Green upset — would embolden critics who believe the Greens, not Reform, are now Labour's principal electoral threat on the left.
Key Takeaways
- Voters in Holborn and St Pancras went to the polls on October 8, 2026, to fill Keir Starmer's former seat, with the result expected in the early hours of Friday.
- The contest is a two-horse race between Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali and Green Party leader Zack Polanski, whose candidacy is an unusual gamble for a sitting party leader.
- Gaza, the cost of living, and housing have dominated the campaign, with the Greens courting pro-Palestinian voters while battling a row over a conference vote defining Zionism as racism.
- The vote is the first electoral test of Prime Minister Andy Burnham's leadership since he succeeded Starmer in July.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is there a by-election in Holborn and St Pancras?
The by-election was triggered by the resignation of former prime minister Keir Starmer, who had represented the seat since 2015. Polling day was Thursday, October 8, 2026.
Who are the main candidates?
The frontrunners are Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali, the leader of Camden council who arrived in Britain as a child refugee from Somalia, and the Green Party's leader Zack Polanski. Thirteen other candidates are also standing, but the race is widely seen as a Labour–Green duel.
Has Labour ever lost this seat?
No. Labour has held Holborn and St Pancras continuously since the constituency was created in 1983. That makes a Green victory, while not impossible, a historic upset.
What issues are driving the campaign?
Housing, the cost of living, and the war in Gaza have been the central issues. The Greens have pressed Labour hard on Palestine and the arms trade, while also promoting policies such as controls on private-sector rent increases.
When will the result be known?
Counting begins after polls close, and the result is expected in the early hours of Friday, October 9, 2026.
Sources
- Al Jazeera — "Pro-Palestine Greens challenge Labour's grip on Starmer's former seat"
- The Sun (UK) — "How Green Party is imploding under Zack Polanski over Zionism vote"
