Greens Vote to Define Zionism as Racism: Process, Absence and Fallout
Britain's Green Party has voted to describe Zionism as a form of racism. Reuters reported the result on 4 October from the party's autumn conference. Reuters said the Israeli government condemned the decision, and British Jews criticised the vote. Reuters
Israel has since barred Zack Polanski from entering the country. The National reported the ban on 5 October, after the party adopted the policy. Polanski is leader of the Green Party of England and Wales. The National
Polanski did not vote on the motion. The National said he left the conference after his speech on Friday to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, a contest to elect a new MP. The National said he was not in the room. The party said his absence is central to how it explains the decision. The National
This question is not new inside the party. Its Spring 2026 conference listed a motion titled 'Zionism is Racism'. Jewish Greens said in February that members should vote against it, in an appeal made directly to party members. Jewish Greens
Jewish Greens said on 2 October, in a briefing on survey results, that its members had reached no consensus on the motion. The briefing is short. Jewish Greens said it showed internal disagreement rather than one agreed view. Jewish Greens
The broader context here will be familiar at Westminster. Conference, the members' gathering that sets policy, is sovereign. A leader speaks for the party but does not control the order paper, the list of motions for debate. That tension exists in all member-led parties. It grows sharper when a motion touches foreign policy and equality, and when a by-election campaign is under way.
Looking at Westminster, three pressures now sit together. The first is electoral. Polanski was campaigning in Holborn and St Pancras while delegates voted. He can say he did not back the motion. Opponents can say his party did. Voters will hear both claims. The second is communal. Criticism from British Jews carries weight beyond Westminster. Leaders are judged on meetings, language and future candidate selection, rather than on process explanations. The third is diplomatic. Condemnation by the Israeli government is formal, and a travel bar on a party leader is unusual. It does not change domestic policy. It does affect how a party is received abroad, which counts for a small party seeking to look ready for government.
What is clear for now is limited. The party has adopted the position. Its leader was absent for the vote. Its Jewish affiliate reports no internal consensus. Those three facts will shape questions to Polanski in the coming weeks. The answers will be watched in the lobby, in the by-election seat, and beyond.
