# Labour holds Holborn and St Pancras in tight by-election

> Sagal Abdi-Wali wins with 45 per cent as Zack Polanski's Greens surge but fall short of upset.
- Title: Labour holds Holborn and St Pancras in tight by-election
- Summary: Sagal Abdi-Wali wins with 45 per cent as Zack Polanski's Greens surge but fall short of upset. Labour retained Holborn and St Pancras with Sagal Abdi-Wali…
- Keywords: holborn and st pancras, labour, sagal abdi-wali, green party, zack polanski, by-election, uk politics, politics, news, holds, Holborn, Pancras
- Source: The Independent — https://independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/holborn-st-pancras-by-election-results-who-won-b3063906.html
- Published: 2026-10-09T12:03:47+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: holborn and st pancras, labour, sagal abdi-wali, green party, zack polanski, by-election, uk politics, politics, news
## Labour wins Holborn and St Pancras
Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali won the by-election with twelve thousand two hundred ninety-two votes, forty-five percent, retaining the seat after Sir Keir Starmer's departure.
## Greens surge but fall short
Green Party leader Zack Polanski came second with eight thousand nine hundred twenty-eight votes, thirty-three percent. A thirteen percent swing to the Greens was not enough for victory.
## Labour's narrowest margin since 1983
Abdi-Wali's majority of three thousand three hundred sixty-four votes, or twelve point four percent, is Labour's lowest in the seat since it was created in nineteen eighty-three.
## Abdi-Wali speaks on belonging
The incoming MP, who came to the UK as a child refugee from Somalia in the nineteen nineties, said in her victory speech: I hope they see themselves reflected in this place and know that…

> I hope they see themselves reflected in this place and know that their path too belongs here.
## Polanski vows to stay as Green leader
Despite the loss, Zack Polanski said he does not believe his candidacy was a mistake, calling it an opportunity to present Green Party values and talk about rent controls and the climate crisis.

> I think it has been an opportunity to present Green Party values, to talk about rent controls, tackling the climate crisis, nationalising Thames Water.
## Greens claim foundation for future
A Green Party spokesperson said the result is the party's second strongest by-election result by vote share after Hannah Spencer's February victory in Gorton and Denton, describing it as a foundation.
## Key takeaway

Labour retained Holborn and St Pancras with Sagal Abdi-Wali winning twelve thousand two hundred ninety-two votes, but a thirteen percent swing to the Greens showed the party's growing challenge.