Labour candidate Sagal Abdullahi has won the by-election in the north London constituency of Holborn and St Pancras, succeeding former British Prime Minister Keir Starmer as the constituency’s representative in the House of Commons after defeating her closest rival, Green Party leader Zack Polanski, in Thursday’s vote.
Holborn by-election results
Abdullahi, a hijab-wearing Muslim of Somali descent, received 12,292 votes, or 45.3% of the total. She led Polanski by 3,364 votes, with the Green leader finishing second on 8,928 votes, or 32.9%. Conservative candidate Yowan Cameron came third with 1,922 votes, followed by Reform candidate Peter Newman with 1,612 votes.
George Galloway, leader of the Workers Party of Britain, finished seventh with just 314 votes. Turnout in the by-election was 38.76%, down from the 54.1% recorded in the same constituency at the 2024 general election.
Abdullahi’s political and local-government career
The result means Labour has retained a seat associated with the party for decades, having not lost Holborn and St Pancras since 1983. Abdullahi, 42, has become the first woman to represent the constituency in the House of Commons. She arrived in Britain with her family as a refugee child during the 1990s and grew up in Camden, in north London.
She began her public-service career by volunteering on the ground with charities and serving on the boards of community organisations and schools. She later entered formal politics, being elected to Camden Council in 2022 before becoming its leader in May 2026 as a Labour representative.
The new MP’s priorities in the constituency
Abdullahi’s political work focuses on a range of local issues, foremost among them tackling homelessness and addressing the housing crisis in coordination with Mayor Andy Burnham. She is also calling for Thames Water to be returned to public ownership.
After her victory, Abdullahi addressed Labour’s position on the Palestinian issue, telling The Guardian: “The work being done by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband on Gaza, Palestine and Israel has been very well received.” Polanski, meanwhile, ran an intensive campaign in an attempt to take the seat from Labour.
His campaign came as the Green Party faced an internal debate after its annual conference passed a motion describing Zionism as a form of racism. Despite losing the contest, Polanski confirmed that he would remain the party’s leader, saying after the result was announced: “Of course I will continue to lead the Green Party.”
He also discussed his shift in thinking on Zionism, explaining that he grew up in a Zionist family but changed his views after learning about and researching the Palestinian issue. Polanski described what he regarded as an ongoing genocide and the displacement of Palestinians as “clearly racist”.
Speaking about a two-state solution, he said that determining the form of the state was not his party’s responsibility, stressing the need to guarantee equal rights for all, regardless of religion or belief. The election result showed Labour’s success in defending the former prime minister’s seat, while Polanski’s share of the vote reflected the Green Party’s ability to establish an electoral presence in urban constituencies, despite failing to achieve its stated goal of taking the seat.
