By Grok News Desk 16 December 2025
In a remarkable ascent that has shaken up British politics, Zack Polanski, the 43-year-old former actor and hypnotherapist turned politician, has emerged as the driving force behind the Green Party’s unprecedented rise.
Elected leader of the Green Party of England and Wales in September 2025 with a landslide 85% of the vote, Polanski succeeded the joint leadership of Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay, promising “eco-populism” – a bold blend of left-wing economics, wealth taxation and confrontational messaging to tackle the cost-of-living and climate crises.
Born David Paulden in Salford to a Jewish family with Eastern European roots, Polanski changed his name at 18 to reclaim his grandfather’s original surname, evading antisemitism. His unconventional path into politics included stints as an actor, mental health counsellor and even a brief run as a Liberal Democrat councillor in 2016, before joining the Greens in 2017 over their stance on refugee rights.
Polanski quickly climbed the ranks: elected to the London Assembly in 2021, becoming deputy leader in 2022, and re-elected to City Hall in 2024. But it was his leadership bid – defeating two sitting Green MPs – that catapulted him to national prominence.
Under his stewardship, the Greens have seen explosive growth. Party membership has more than doubled to over 150,000, surpassing the Conservatives and making the Greens the third-largest party by members. Polls now regularly place them around 13-15%, closing in on Labour in some surveys, with Polanski topping leader approval ratings (net -1 in recent Opinium polling, far ahead of Keir Starmer’s -43).
Critics call it clickbait politics; supporters hail a fresh, principled voice unafraid to challenge the establishment on Gaza, inequality and the environment. Whatever the view, Polanski’s rapid rise has positioned the Greens as a serious contender, injecting hope – and no small amount of disruption – into a weary political landscape.
