In a political landscape shaken by shifting allegiances, the Green Party is experiencing an unexpected surge, capturing the imagination of disenchanted voters.
Pollsters estimate that the Left-wing party’s vote share has skyrocketed from around 10% to 17% (Image: Getty)
The Green Party is riding a wave of unprecedented support, polling at its highest-ever level as Left-wing voters turn their backs on Labour, according to a new survey by YouGov. The Greens are now just two points behind Sir Keir Starmer‘s party following a tumultuous week for the Government, reports The Telegraph.
Pollsters estimate that the Left-wing party’s share of the vote has skyrocketed from around 10 per cent to 17 per cent in just two months since the election of its new “eco-populist” leader Zack Polanski. Meanwhile, Labour’s vote, which had already plummeted during the party’s first year in office, has fallen by a further two points.
The latest polling, carried out by YouGov on Sunday and Monday, puts the Greens in third place on 17 per cent of the vote, the party’s highest ever score. Reform UK remains far ahead on 27 per cent, according to the survey of 2,355 voters, followed by Labour on 19 per cent, the Tories on 17 per cent, and the Lib Dems on 13 per cent.
Polanski’s success in attracting disenfranchised Labour Left voters
The result will be seen as a major success for Mr Polanski, the new Green Party leader, who is attempting to mop up disenfranchised voters on the Labour Left. Just hours before the new polling dropped, the party announced that the number of young Greens had swelled to 40,000, making it the “largest youth and student movement in UK politics.”
The YouGov survey will add to a growing sense of doom for the Prime Minister, as a separate poll for The Times shows nearly half of Labour voters want him out of Downing Street before the next election.
Mr Polanski, a self-professed “eco-populist” who was elected as the Greens’ leader in September, is a former hypnotherapist who infamously claimed women could increase their breast size with their minds. He won the ballot of party members by a landslide, despite starting off the campaign as the underdog.
Greens positioned as Left-wing alternative to Reform UK
The new leader has made a particular effort to attract voters who are losing faith in the mainstream parties, positioning the Greens as a Left-wing alternative to Reform UK by connecting “with people’s anger.” The approach has proved controversial with the party establishment, who have warned the Greens need to be at the “centre of British politics, not fighting on the sidelines.”
The Green leader is focused on building a wider appeal to progressives, beyond a focus on the environment, with calls for a wealth tax of 1 per cent on assets above £10m and 2 per cent above £1bn. He has also been vocal about the war in Gaza, describing it as a “genocide”, and said migration is Britain’s “superpower.”
The idea is to build a strong new movement on the Left as the Government is accused of moving further to the Right with tougher policies on welfare and immigration. On Monday, the Greens labelled the Government’s latest migration crackdown as “inhumane.”
