Green MP warns party must avoid 'capture by extremists and racists' after Zionism vote

Ellie Chowns says policy-making process is broken as Zack Polanski faces calls to resign after byelection defeat

By LineZotpaper

Published10 October 2026

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A senior Green Party MP has warned that her party must avoid being "vulnerable to capture by extremists and racists" as it contends with the fallout from a conference vote declaring Zionism a form of racism, a decision passed by just over 1,000 members, roughly 0.4 per cent of the party's total membership.

A senior Green Party MP has warned that the party must guard against "capture by extremists and racists" as it deals with the fallout from last week's conference vote declaring Zionism a form of racism.

Ellie Chowns, the party's leader in the House of Commons, told the BBC's Radio 4 Today Programme that the ability to pass such a "significant and damaging policy" made it clear the party's structures and policy-making processes were not working.

"I don't think that policy, 'Zionism is racism', represents the large majority of Green party members, nor of people in the country," she said.

The motion, which passed at the annual conference with just over 1,000 votes, approximately 0.4 per cent of total membership, commits the party to treating Zionism, the movement for a Jewish state, as any other form of racism, and to backing a single Palestinian state over a two-state solution.

"We don't want to be in debates about the meaning of contested terms, we want to be united and focusing in contesting and criticising the horrific actions of the Israeli government," Chowns said.

The debate over whether the party's decentralised policy-making structures remain suitable for a rapidly expanding membership comes hours after party leader Zack Polanski was defeated by Labour in the Holborn and St Pancras byelection. Polanski, who received just under 33 per cent of the vote, has insisted he will remain as leader despite calls to stand down, including from the chair of the Jewish Greens. The party normally holds leadership elections every two years, meaning the next would be in summer 2027.

Chowns, who lost a co-leadership bid against Polanski in 2025, described the leader's "clear" lack of leadership over the Zionism motion as "disappointing", but said he had the opportunity to unite the party having recognised the flaws in the motion.

The controversy comes amid heightened tensions between the UK and Israel. The Labour government has imposed sanctions on illegal settlements in occupied Palestine, and Israel has retaliated by attempting to close the British consulate in Jerusalem.

Analysis

Why This Matters

The policy was passed by roughly 0.4 per cent of the party's membership, raising questions about whether the Greens' member-led structures can carry significant and damaging decisions.
The Holborn and St Pancras defeat shows the political cost, and the dispute risks defining the party into the next general election cycle.
The row deepens UK-Israel tensions at a time when the two governments are already clashing over sanctions on settlements in occupied Palestine.

Background

The Green Party of England and Wales has grown rapidly in recent years, and its annual conference gives rank-and-file members direct power to set policy. That tradition of decentralised decision-making is now the focus of an internal argument, with critics saying small groups of activists can pass significant policy with a tiny share of the vote.

The Zionism motion sits inside a broader and long-running debate about how parties on the left address the Israel-Palestine conflict, set against heightened focus on Israel's actions in Gaza following the October 7 attacks. It also echoes earlier disputes within British left-wing politics over antisemitism and the meaning of contested political terms.

Key Perspectives

Ellie Chowns and critics of the vote: The policy was passed through a broken process, does not represent the majority of members or the public, and distracts from criticising the Israeli government's actions. Zack Polanski and the leadership: Polanski acknowledges flaws in the motion and wants to keep the party united and focused; he has rejected calls to resign and intends to serve until the next scheduled leadership election in 2027. Jewish Greens and concerned members: The chair of the Jewish Greens has called for Polanski to stand down, and Chowns has warned the party is vulnerable to capture by extremists and racists.

What to Watch

Whether pressure builds for an early leadership contest or for the policy to be revisited before the scheduled 2027 election.
How the broader membership responds to a decision passed by a fraction of one per cent of members.
The diplomatic fallout with Israel, which has already moved to close the British consulate in Jerusalem.

Sources

Greens must avoid ‘capture by extremists and racists’, says party MP — World news | The Guardian