{"id":45,"date":"2025-12-17T18:15:30","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T18:15:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brightonradicalradio.com\/?p=45"},"modified":"2026-01-18T16:54:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T16:54:02","slug":"green-win-marina-lademacher-beats-keir-starmers-labour-in-queens-park-by-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brightonradicalradio.com\/?p=45","title":{"rendered":"Green win! – Marina Lademacher beats Keir Starmer’s Labour in Queen’s Park By-election"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Marina Lademacher has won the Queen’s Park By-election<\/u><\/a> for the Greens in Brighton, beating Labour and finishing well ahead of Reform in third place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marina won 1133 votes or 48% of the vote share, an increase of 20% since the last election in 2023 and a comfortable margin over their nearest rival, Labour, in second place with 729 votes who saw a sharp fall off 15%. Reform finished some way behind in third place with 237 votes but this still represents 10% of the vote share, not to be ignored in the traditionally progressive stronghold of central Brighton. Overall, this brings the Greens up to 9 councillors with Labour on 35. The full list of results can be seen at the end of this article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marina’s election represents a small comeback for the Greens who lost 12 councillors at the last local elections in 2023. They ran on a strong progressive and socialist platform aiming to attract voters dissatisfied with Labour’s tumultuous first year in government. They said before the election<\/u><\/a> that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“<\/em>Voters across the country are abandoning Labour, and in Queen\u2019s Park we\u2019ve already been hearing on the doorstep that people are putting their trust in us as the only bold and necessary alternative.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Labour’s vote slide is in line with current national polling and represents their, and Keir Starmer’s, high unpopularity. Labour city council leader, Bella Sankey, referenced the “Volatile national picture” writing on X (Twitter) after the election:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“<\/em>We knew this would be a difficult by-election, given the volatile national picture. While this result is disappointing we want to thank every resident who kept the faith with Labour and all residents for the important doorstep conversations. We are listening carefully to what people in Queen\u2019s Park are telling us and will redouble our efforts to deliver on the issues that matter”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
  The vote share of the Queen’s park by-election @ Stats for Lefties<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
       Queen’s Park Canvassing with former Green MP Caroline Lucas @ <\/em>Marina Lademacher on X (Twitter)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Whilst the result is only a council by-election, it will be a big boost to the Greens locally and nationally. Having just elected their charismatic new leader<\/a>, Zak Polanski, the Greens have seen surge in momentum, breaking 10%<\/a> in the aggregate national polling for the first time and more recently surpassing the liberal democrats <\/a>in membership numbers with 83,500 members, to the Lib Dems 83,174. It also demonstrates that the Green’s strategy of winning over disillusioned progressives is paying dividends – a good benchmark for the local elections in May 2026 and their target of unseating Labour MPs in progressive strongholds, ultimately allowing them to exert some real influence over the government and it’s decisions for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Greens have reached 10% vote share in the average national polling for the first time. 5x the 2% share they held in 2017. The election of charismatic leader Zak Polanksi is set to increase this figure even more @ StatsForLefties on Twitter (X).<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is compounded by what many perceive to be the Labour Party’s current ideological and political vacuum. Following what has been described as “large scale hostility to left wing members and candidates”, the Labour Party membership has tumbled<\/a> from over 500,000 at it’s height in 2019 to less than 250,000 as of December 2025. This has coincided with a disjointed and incoherent program for government that has been “widely rejected” by the electorate, ultimately making Keir Starmer the most unpopular Prime Minister<\/a> in British history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“It also demonstrates that the Green’s<\/em> strategy of winning over disillusioned progressives is paying dividends<\/em>“<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In fact, Labour is now haemorrhaging more votes to parties on its left, such as the Greens and Lib Dems, then it is to Reform according to recent YouGov analysis<\/u><\/a>. Many, including polling expert Sir John Curtice, are now warning that Labour “should not abandon it’s core voters and traditionally socialist values” otherwise it risks loosing these voters to insurgent progressives<\/u><\/a> and ultimately it’s ability to command any kind of Parliamentary majority or, more likely as of 2025, to build a progressive coalition at the next election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, notwithstanding Labour’s internal struggles, the result in Brighton will bolster the Greens who, fresh from their recent conference in Bournemouth<\/a>, are putting out strong messaging on inequality and taxes for the super rich. Whether Keir Starmer and the Labour Party choose to listen to it’s members, and these voters, to take the necessary actions in government remains to be seen. So far, the signs are not looking promising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full results of the election<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n