Zack Polanski has been decisively elected chief of the Inexperienced Social gathering, however who’s he and what does he stand for?
Regardless of beforehand serving as deputy chief of the social gathering, Mr Polanski, 42, was seen all through the marketing campaign as an rebel candidate, providing change for the Greens.
By comparability, his management rivals Adrian Ramsay and Dr Ellie Chowns have been seen as being the candidates of continuity, somewhat than change.
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Mr Polanski, who just isn’t an MP however is a member of the London Meeting, gained 20,411 votes – in comparison with the three,705 ballots forged for Mr Ramsay and Dr Chowns, who ran on a joint ticket.
It means his imaginative and prescient of making an “eco-populist” Inexperienced Social gathering, with a extra seen mass-membership motion, has been decisively endorsed by those that voted – albeit if this was solely 37% of these eligible to forged a poll.
So, who’s Zack Polanski?
Born David Paulden, he modified his identify when he turned 18 to his grandfather’s unique surname, to keep away from antisemitism.
He grew up in Salford, initially attending a grammar faculty on a scholarship earlier than switching to a complete school. Mr Polanski then attended college in Wales and later in the USA.
The Inexperienced Social gathering chief is homosexual and thanked his associate following his victory. He’s additionally vegan and lives in Hackney, east London.
His political profession started not with the Inexperienced Social gathering, however with the Liberal Democrats, which he joined first, standing for the social gathering as a councillor in north London in 2015 and once more for the Lib Dems as a London Meeting candidate in 2016.
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Mr Polanski gained with a vote of 20,411 members
However he switched allegiance the next 12 months, becoming a member of the Greens and being elected a member of the London Meeting in 2021, after an unsuccessful try and be elected as an MP in 2019.
Mr Polanski was then elected deputy chief of the Inexperienced Social gathering in 2022.
Whereas deputy chief, he was additionally re-elected again to the London Meeting in 2024 and have become chair of the London Meeting surroundings committee.
However Mr Polanski’s rise to the highest of the Greens just isn’t with out controversy.
In 2013, he ran a hypnotherapy observe and served a Solar journalist who went in as a consumer, asking him whether or not he might make her suppose herself to having larger boobs.
Mr Polanski has since apologised for his previous actions, telling LBC final 12 months that it “does not represent my work, it does not represent me”.
Picture:
Mr Polanski rejected the imaginative and prescient of continuity supplied by management rivals Dr Ellie Chowns and former chief, Adrian Ramsay. Pic: PA
He introduced he would run to be chief of the Inexperienced Social gathering within the 2025 contest, which was delayed by a 12 months in order to not conflict with the 2024 basic election. Members of the social gathering are requested to vote on the leaders each two years.
What does he stand for?
Mr Polanski pledged to result in an “eco-populist” imaginative and prescient if elected, remodeling the social gathering right into a extra seen, mass-membership motion.
He mentioned folks can’t deal with the local weather disaster if they’re going through difficult financial issues, so he has advocated for top taxes on billionaires – together with a wealth tax – in addition to the renationalisation of water firms and extra regulation for companies.
At a hustings in July, he argued that the social gathering ought to mix “substance with clickbait” to convey a severe problem to Reform UK.
Picture:
Mr Polanski has criticised the Labour authorities over a spread of insurance policies, from cuts to its stance on the warfare in Gaza. Pic: PA
He has outlined a imaginative and prescient for the Greens to enchantment to progressive left voters who really feel that Labour has turned away from them underneath Sir Keir Starmer’s management.
In contrast to his management rivals, Mr Polanski has additionally refused to rule out working with the brand new political social gathering based by former Labour chief Jeremy Corbyn and ex-Labour MP Zarah Sultana.
Talking following his election, Mr Polanski promised to “work every single day to deliver environmental, social, racial and economic justice”.
He additionally pledged to develop the social gathering, saying he would love the Greens to win at the least 30 seats on the subsequent basic election, in addition to get extra MSs elected to the Senedd in Cardiff.
Mr Polanski hit out at “charlatans like Nigel Farage”, accusing him and different millionaires of “pretending to serve working-class communities” whereas “destroying our democracies”. However he additionally warned the Labour Social gathering that the Greens are “here to replace you”.
