Calls for Zack Polanski to resign as Green Party leader
One in three Britons think Zack Polanski should resign as the leader of the Green Party, polling conducted on Friday in the wake of his defeat in a key Parliamentary by-election has found, reports BritPanorama.
Just one in five (20 per cent) believe he should remain in post amid widespread condemnation of a party motion that declared Zionism to be a form of racism, according to the YouGov survey.
Mr Polanski is facing growing calls from within his party to stand down, with one senior Green figure stating that the situation is “untenable.”
The leader of the Jewish Greens, Vivien Lichtenstein, has called for him to resign, stating he made a “big mistake” by missing the debate on the motion last week. She is among a number of senior Green figures who have publicly criticized Mr Polanski and questioned his leadership. Former leader Caroline Lucas has also accused him of failing to show effective leadership.
On Friday, Mr Polanski stated he would have voted against the ‘Zionism is racism’ motion but was too occupied campaigning in the by-election. He expressed that he intended to propose amendments to the motion, which ultimately fell, asserting, “I would have voted against the motion because I think there are aspects of it that I don’t think are okay.”
The motion has been condemned widely, with the Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, describing it as a “threat to British Jews and to Britain.” Additionally, leading barrister Adam Wagner KC noted that there is a significant risk the motion, passed at the Greens’ annual conference last weekend, contravenes the Equality Act 2010. Mr Polanski has also been barred from entering Israel in retaliation.
In the by-election to replace Sir Keir Starmer as the MP for Holborn and St Pancras, Mr Polanski was defeated by Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali. She secured 45 per cent of the vote to the Greens’ 33 per cent, winning by a margin of 3,364 votes, though the Greens enjoyed a notable 13 per cent swing in their favour, with a 22.4 per cent increase in their vote share.
The YouGov poll posed the question, “Do you think Zack Polanski should remain as leader of the Green Party, or stand down and let someone else take over?” Overall, 47 per cent of respondents indicated they did not have a definitive opinion.
Among Green voters, 47 per cent support their leader, while 22 per cent believe he should resign. Labour and Liberal Democrat voters are split on the issue, with around 29 per cent expressing the view that he should remain leader and a similar percentage wanting him to step down.
The Greens have been approached for comment.
