Electoral victories don’t get much more resounding than Zack Polanski’s. He defeated Ellie Chowns and Adam Ramsay by a five to one margin, winning 20411 votes to their 3705 to become Green Party leader. This was not so much a landslide, more like a political shift of tectonic plates.

His acceptance speech was a good indicator of the direction in which he aims to take the party. In every major respect it is different from what Labour are offering. Unlike Labour, he refers to the genocide in Gaza by its proper name; at a time when Labour are indistinguishable from Reform and Tommy Robinson in their rhetoric about migrants he referred to them as “the backbone of this country” and where Labour MPs refuse to support strikes he said that his first visit as party leader will be to a union for migrant workers.

His explicit strategic aim is for the Greens to replace Labour as the party of the working class.  He wants to provide a political alternative to both it and Reform in areas in which British capitalism is driving people into the arms of the far right and we are starting to see the emergence of a new wave of fascist street fighters. This is a real contrast to Starmer who is one interview away from revealing that even his socks and underwear are decorated with patriotic flags.

Polanski pointed out in his statement that the Greens came second in 39 constituencies in the last general election in which they won 1,843,124 votes. It is obvious that Labour is making a real effort to “shake off the fleas” of its left wing members and voters, so in a range of local government elections next year many of these can be expected to switch to a left alternative. That will be the Greens in many parts of England and Wales where Polanski’s robust eco-populist message will be well received.  It is essentially what used to be called “class struggle politics” merged with an understanding of the impact of climate change in working class British communities as well as globally.

Self-evidently, some form of co-operation will be necessary between this new radical, urbanised version of the Greens and the Sultana / Corbyn party when it does consolidate. Polanski is in favour of it and Jeremy Corbyn was quick to write “Congratulations to Zack Polanski on your stunning victory.

Your campaign took on the rich and powerful, stood up for the dignity of all marginalised communities, and gave people hope!

Real change is coming. I look forward to working with you to create a fairer, kinder world.”

One of the curious facts about the recent rise of the Greens is that they haven’t been targeted with false and slanderous allegations of antisemitism of the sort that were orchestrated against Corbyn and his supporters. Credit where it’s due though, The Times did try briefly to set that hare running and seems to have thought better of it and Polanski has been more robust at dealing with liars than Corbyn was. That said, we can sit back with the popcorn when the right wing press and other supporters of the genocide go after him. That playbook doesn’t work anymore.

Something that has gone largely unremarked amid all the excitement about the new leader is that the party’s new deputy leader is Mothin Ali who is of Bangladeshi heritage and a Muslim. A lot of Labour councillors and MPs should be feeling seriously worried by the new Green leadership working in harness with another left party.