“There is an anti-status quo right-wing policy that has been reformed, and with Zack speaking out so clearly, there is now a left-wing position.”
The Green Party claims to now be the third party in the country. The number of its members exceeded the figures announced by the Conservative Party. Under the leadership of its new leader, Zack Polanski, the party managed to establish itself in a few months at the forefront of the British political scene. In the East Midlands, the party hopes to continue to gain ground in the coming years, writes local democracy journalist Joe Locker.
In early September, self-proclaimed “ecopopulist” Zack Polanski became the new leader of the Green Party.
Just over a month later, the left-wing party announced that it had reached 100,000 members for the first time, a 50 percent increase since it took power.
Membership numbers have now reached 170,000, surpassing the Conservative Party, which had around 120,000 members according to its latest figures.
Although membership numbers do not always correspond to winning elections – Jeremy Corbyn’s Labor Party had 500,000 members – the outpouring of support is notable.
In Nottingham their numbers have quadrupled from 500 last year to around 2,000.
Across the East Midlands, membership increased from 4,000 to 12,000.
“The Greens haven’t been loud in their policies. Under Zack, we haven’t had a change in policy – we’ve had a change in volume.”
The Green Party’s sudden surge to the forefront to become – it claims – the third largest party in terms of membership comes at a time when the Brexit party renamed Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, continues to dominate local elections.
“The reform push comes from anti-status quo politics,” says Ben Gray, co-chair of the East Midlands Green Party.
“There is an anti-status quo policy from the right, which has been reformed, and with Zack being so vocal, there is now a position from the left.
“The Greens haven’t been loud in their policy. So under Zack, we haven’t had a change in policy – we’ve had a change in volume.”
Mr Polanski turned up the volume in the form of a policy of “hope” and “boldness”, with the Green Party’s key message being to tax the super rich.
One of these proposed policies is the implementation of a 1 per cent wealth tax above £10 million and 2 per cent above £1 billion, which the party estimates could raise £14.8 billion a year.
Meanwhile, the Reform Party has delivered an equally strong message for change, but in the form of tax cuts, spending cuts by reducing foreign aid, and a radical crackdown on immigration.
So far, the Reform Party’s message has reached enough actively participating voters to get their candidates across the finish line.
In May, Reformers took control of Nottinghamshire County Council, having won enough seats to secure a majority and oust the Conservatives.
The party managed to secure 40 seats in Nottinghamshire, while the Conservatives now form the largest opposition group, with 17 councillors.
However, election turnout showed that a large portion of the electorate simply does not want to engage.
Mr Gray says he believes the Green Party now offers an alternative to a section of disenfranchised left-wing voters.
“We were very close during the departmental elections,” he declared. “We came close before, but we got even closer.
“In 2027, if this surge continues, we should be able to win a lot of seats and maybe even be the main opposition. [under local government reorganisation] seems like that’s a big part of it.
He claimed a by-election in Market Harborough, for Harborough District Council, provides evidence of the Reform Party’s dominance in the polls being weakened by the Green Party.
David Page of the Conservative Party was elected with 461 votes, while Jake Bolton of the Green Party came second with 358.
The Reformists came in fourth place, with a turnout of around 30 percent, higher than the frequently cited 20 percent.
“Unlike the Reform Party, we don’t have a lot of money, so we always have to choose where we can campaign hard,” Mr Gray said.
“Where we’re campaigning, we’re seeing higher turnout rates. The reformers aren’t really in the race.”
“We need to give people who feel politically homeless a choice – a real alternative”
In March this year, the former Sheriff of Nottingham, Shuguftah Quddoos, joined the Green Party.
In doing so, she became the second local politician in the city’s history to join the group, following John Peck in 1990.
Peck won the seat of Bulwell East in his 36th attempt in 1987, under the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB).
As the council was then made up of equal numbers of members from the Labor and Conservative parties, it often held the casting vote on current issues.
In 1990, as the CPGB was winding down, Mr. Peck defected to the Green Party.
He held this seat in three elections before retiring in 1997.
Cllr Quddoos, who represents the Berridge ward on Nottingham City Council, previously represented the Labor Party before resigning in November 2024.
She resigned after being suspended by the party, having been the only councilor to vote against the authority’s “devastating” budget last year, on March 4.
Independent since November, Cllr Quddoos announced in March 2025 that she had joined the Green Party in a speech in front of the Robin Hood statue.
She had been joined at the statue by Mr. Polanski before he made his bid for leadership, where she proclaimed that she aspired to become the adviser that Mr. Peck had been: “There for solutions, not status.”
“I became a Green Party councilor in March when our membership was not growing,” Councilor Quddoos told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“That’s the problem with politics, you never know what’s going to happen.”
Although the Greens failed to win a seat on the Labour-dominated council in an election, Cllr Quddoos said her decision had been welcomed by those she represents.
She said it was thanks to the Green Party that allowed her to continue her work, without interference and with a culture that allowed discussion.
“I’m glad we’re getting more media coverage and presence, but we need to offer real hope and real alternatives,” she said.
“Otherwise, raising people’s expectations and not being able to deliver is something I’m very conscious of as a local councillor. If I say I’m going to do something for a local resident, I do my best to make sure I do it.
“We need to give people who feel politically homeless a choice, a real alternative.
“What I like about the Green Party is that they say to me: you do the work, we will amplify your message. We will campaign, you will do the work, and that’s what will speak to people.”
“This is how we build the movement. Trust in politics is at an all-time low, and I think the only way to build that trust is to offer a real alternative, to show that we care for people, care for each other, nature and our green spaces and that they matter.”
Cllr Quddoos says she believes there is a “real opportunity” for the party in the town.
“Caring for people and the places they live in is a philosophy that has a lot of resonance for me, and I think for many people in Nottingham,” she added.
“Here we have Green Hustle and the Green Festival. There is an awareness in the city and a lot of activists – concerned about nature – who see the Green Party as an alternative.
“Nottingham is progressive on green issues. Historically we have, but I don’t think we have the same commitment currently.
“In my opinion, the climate crisis is one of the top three problems we face.
“There is a real opportunity here for the Green Party to have real political power. There is real space. Our membership has grown here.”
“The power of the people”
Mr Gray said the party’s biggest challenge lies in its finances.
Many of the largest political parties rely on donors to fund their campaigns.
In December, Reform received a record £9 million donation from cryptocurrency investor and aviation entrepreneur Christopher Harborne – the largest donation ever made by a living person to a British political party.
Meanwhile, Mr Gray says the Green Party has so far relied on crowdsourcing.
A recent crowdfunding effort organized by the party raised £100,000 in just five hours.
By the second day the total had passed the £250,000 mark.
“We saw people donating,” Mr. Gray added.
“We get a lot of money from our memberships, but having campaigns like that, where he hit that target in five hours, really helps us.”
“Because we’re not used to having a lot of money, we’re very good at spending it the right way, targeting it and spending it on good staff.
“Money is a major issue, but we are a people power party, so crowdfunding is more our business than having a big donor come in.”
