Green Party MP warns of extremist vulnerability after vote
The Green Party faces deep internal division after members voted to define Zionism as racism, prompting calls for urgent reform.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Green Party members voted to approve a motion defining Zionism as racism at their conference.
- Westminster leader Ellie Chowns condemned the policy as significant and damaging to the party.
- Former leader Caroline Lucas warned the party is vulnerable to entryism and requires reform.
- Leader Zack Polanski faces mounting pressure following a recent by-election defeat in London.
The Green Party of England and Wales is facing severe internal friction after party activists successfully passed a policy motion declaring Zionism to be a form of racism. The controversial motion was formally adopted as official party policy following a vote at the Greens' annual conference earlier this month.
Party members endorsed the motion by 1,022 votes to 813, out of a total membership base of approximately 230,000, although not all members attended the conference. The newly adopted policy also endorses a single democratic Palestinian state across all historic Palestinian territories, including modern-day Israel, and defines Zionism as an ideology backing an ethnonationalist Jewish state.
The decision has triggered sharp divisions among senior party figures and drew fierce condemnation from prominent Jewish organizations. The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council criticized the motion, emphasizing that Zionism stands for anti-racism and provides a sanctuary for Jewish people in their ancestral homeland after centuries of persecution.
"It was a significant and damaging policy and I would work to reform the Green Party."
Ellie Chowns
Ellie Chowns, the party's Westminster leader, told the BBC that the decision resulted in a damaging policy and pledged to work toward reforming the organization. Meanwhile, former leader Caroline Lucas warned that the party lacked adequate defenses against entryism, where individuals join a political party specifically to alter its platform, adding that the party must restore itself as a welcoming environment for the Jewish community.
This internal crisis highlights the inherent governance risks for political parties that rely heavily on direct grassroots policy-making. While such participatory structures foster internal democracy, they also make organizations vulnerable to organized activist factions pushing polarizing geopolitical motions that can destabilize leadership and trigger severe external backlash.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
A Green Party spokesperson defended the process, noting that membership has grown since Zack Polanski launched his leadership campaign in May 2025, and emphasized that members hold the unique power to set policy. The spokesperson added that the motion was only one of dozens debated at their largest conference to date and that no single interest group dictates party direction. Polanski, who is Jewish, previously stated he would have opposed the original motion in favor of an amended version.
Tensions intensified further after Polanski suffered a by-election defeat in Holborn and St Pancras against Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali, who secured 45% of the vote compared to Polanski's 33%. Following the defeat, Vivien Lichtenstein, head of Jewish Greens, called for his resignation, arguing that dodging the conference debate over the motion was a major mistake, particularly as Polanski departed early to campaign instead of casting a vote.
Source: BBC Politics
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