The Greens are being written off in Holborn and St Pancras. Don't be so sure

The debate hasn’t even begun but the arguments have already started in the queue outside. It’s 24th September, the day of the first full hustings for the Holborn and St Pancras by-election. And within seconds of arriving at the venue, I’m watching as a group of incensed Conservatives who’ve commuted all the way from Barnet heckle a soft-spoken, middle-aged Green party supporter trying to make a video for social media. 

“I’m here to support Zack Polanski…” she starts to say to camera. “Well someone’s got to!” roars one of the stoked up Tories. 

Over the course of the next few hours of the event, hosted by the Board of Deputies of British Jews, there’s a lot of shouting, arguments about Israel and a strange five minute aside about defending the right to circumcision, but surprisingly few mentions of Holborn and St Pancras. In my spot near the back of the audience I’m flanked by a middle-aged woman who is defending her decision to vote for the far-right Restore Party, despite knowing about its national candidates' long records of antisemitism, because she “just can’t” have the Green Party in power.

It’s a weird evening, but then again, “it’s a complex constituency,” as Andrew Feinstein, who challenged Starmer in the seat in 2024 tells me. “When people think about the area, they see it as a wealthy middle class area, [but] it really is a reflection of the city. It’s very ethnically and economically diverse.” It’s that sheer breadth that has made things much more unpredictable and left pundits and observers trying to predict the outcome somewhat muted.

The vibes are firmly on the side of Labour, whose members are full of confidence as Polanski’s honeymoon fades and Burnham drags his party up in the national polls. Some party figures have even walked up to local journalists from the Camden New Journal at party conference to tell them “it’s just how many votes Sagal Abdi-Wali wins the Holborn & St Pancras by-election by — not if she will win”. But a closer look at the constituency suggests it’s not that straightforward.

Hey, it's Andrew, one of The Londoner's reporters here.

There's lots of fascinating inside details from the by-election to come, like Green party infighting, failed pub trips and diatribes about the supposedly deadly risks of going to Camden Market.

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