From a friend of The Green Light Blog
At present there are two declared leadership contenders, Adrian Ramsay and Ellie Chowns as co-leaders, and Zack Polanski. There could be more before the June 30th deadline. The election is for a one year term after internal delays last year.
This already gives Party members a real choice of candidates. All three candidates are fully cognisant of the accelerating climate and ecological catastrophes happening round the planet and all call for urgent action. They all fully support the 2024 Election Manifesto.
Since that election, Ramsay and Chowns have been sitting in the House of Commons as MPs representing their rural constituency in Suffolk and Herefordshire respectively. Ramsay, who is also currently still co-leader, was CEO of the Centre for Alternative Energy. Chowns is a former MEP and overturned a majority with a swing of 34% in what seemed an unwinnable and conservative seat. They are both known for their hard work and have a powerful presence in Parliament, More recently, they have been making their mark in the main media.
As well as being elected as an MP, Ramsay served as a councillor for Norwich from 2003 to 2011. He was also elected for two terms as the Deputy leader under Caroline Lucas. He said that the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report was what motivated him to return to front line politics.
Polanski was elected through the Party list under PR for the London Assembly and comes from a different tradition. Formerly an active Lib-Dems member before joining the Green Party in 2017, he has risen to the rank of chair to the Environment Committee and the Fire, Resilience and Emergency Planning Committee of the London Assembly.
A trained actor and LGBTIQA+ activist who embraced Identity Politics as he joined the Green Party, Polanski has developed a cult like following amongst the Young Greens, members of a number of Special Interest groups of the Party such as the newly created Muslim Greens and former Corbyn supporters beyond the Green Party.
As part of his leadership bid, Polanski has planted his ‘eco- populism’ flag firmly on his campaign trail as an antidote to the more traditional electoralist approach from Ramsay and Chowns and as a bold challenge to Nigel Farage and Reform UK’s brand of right wing populism.
Well-connected within the more progressive media world and comfortable in front of the camera, Polanski regularly appears on a wide range of social media platforms with his eco-populist message. His aim is to reaching out to progressives well beyond the Green Party.
Chowns and Ramsay get on with the job. Their plan is to build a movement from the grass roots so as to get more councillors elected and eventually more MPs to join them. As co-leader for the past two years with Carla Denyer – who is standing down – Ramsay can point to the record number of Green Councillors as proof that their approach is working well.
Caroline Lucas has endorsed the co-leadership team. Her voice still carries much clout within the party. Many members who will be invited to take part in the ballot joined the party because of her. Jenny Jones from the House of Lords, former MEP and economist Molly Scott Cato, Jonathan Porrit and Amanda Onwuemene from the Majority Global Greens have also pledged their support. Polanski has been endorsed by left wing influencer Owen Jones, the Leader of the Wales Green Party Anthony Slaughter, Larry Sanders and his colleagues from the London Assembly.
If you are a member and interested to throw your hat in the ring in this important contest for the leadership and key roles on the Executive Committee, jobs descriptions and nominations forms can be obtained from to the Election Returning Officer (ero@greenparty.org.uk) from 10 am on 2nd June online or from the offices of the Returning officer at PO Box 78966, London, SE16 9GQ. Once completed, they have to be delivered to the ERO no later than midday on June 30th.
Further details for members
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