The Green Party has been accused of sectarianism . This is why that wrong

middleeasteye.net · Feb 27, 2026 · Collected from GDELT

Full Article

Both Reform and the UK's governing Labour Party have accused the Green Party of "sectarian" politics, after Green candidate Hannah Spencer won the Gorton and Denton by-election last night. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose Labour candidate came third, said his left-wing rivals had welcomed the "divisive, sectarian politics" of veteran firebrand George Galloway, while Reform's losing candidate Matt Goodwin declared: "We are losing our country. A dangerous Muslim sectarianism has emerged. We have only one general election left to save Britain.” Other Reform politicians repeated claims that there were high rates of "family voting" in the multicultural Gorton and Denton seat, in which one in four voters is Muslim. "Family voting" refers to the illegal practice of voters conferring, colluding or directing each other on voting at the polling station. The pary's leader, Nigel Farage, swiftly linked these claims to Muslims, saying: “This is deeply concerning and raises serious questions about the integrity of the democratic process in predominantly Muslim areas.” On Friday afternoon he announced that Reform had "reported the many cases of ‘family voting’ to the Electoral Commission and Greater Manchester Police". New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Goodwin, now widely referred to online as Matt Badloss after coming second to Spencer, further said that "the progressives were told how to vote", insisting that "Islamists and woke progressives came together to dominate the constituency." Robert Jenrick, a former Conservative minister who, like a growing number of his former colleagues has recently defected to Reform, decried "South Asian men instructing women how to vote at polling stations in modern Britain" and condemned what he called an "appalling level of sectarianism". Starmer referred to challenges to Labour on the extreme left and extreme right, meaning the Greens and Reform, and said that the Green Party's willingness to welcome "divisive, sectarian politics" was a sign that they are "not the harmless environmentalists they pretend to be". But are these claims of sectarianism at all accurate? 'Family voting' Democracy Volunteers, an election observer group funded by a Conservative Party peer, claimed to have witnessed 32 cases of the illegal practice of family voting across Gorton and Denton. These claims have been heavily contested. The by-election’s acting returning officer, speaking on behalf of Manchester City Council, said polling station staff were trained to look for undue influence on voters, and insisted "no such issues" had been reported during polling hours. "If Democracy Volunteers were so concerned about alleged issues they could and should have raised them with us during polling hours so that immediate action could be taken," the returning officer added. 'If Democracy Volunteers were so concerned about alleged issues they could and should have raised them with us during polling hours' - Election returning officer, Manchester City Council "We have operated a central by-election hub which has been rapidly responding to reported issues during the day, in liaison with the police - who had a presence at every polling station - where necessary. "It is extremely disappointing that Democracy Volunteers have waited until after polls have closed to make such claims." Labour has also waded in, calling on authorities to look into the claims made by Democracy Volunteers. The party's chairwoman, Anna Turley, told BBC Newsnight the reports were "extremely worrying". A Labour insider told Middle East Eye the party “didn’t shortlist a single local Muslim candidate. Then they noticed Muslims abandoned Labour in droves and called it sectarianism and family voting. Typical dog-whistle, we’re used to it by now.” The insider added: "The party has turned its back on Muslims." Meanwhile many online have pointed out that Zia Yusuf, Reform's home affairs spokesperson, had on Thursday celebrated a satirical story of voters cheering for Reform in a polling station, which would be electoral malpractice. Yusuf appears to have deleted his post sharing the story on Thursday evening after the original poster clarified that his post was a joke. Did the Greens run a sectarian campaign? Sectarianism is defined as a “narrow‐minded adherence to a particular sect" whose synonyms include "bigot", "separatist" and "extremist". In the past in the UK, the word has been applied to rival sides in the Northern Irish conflict. But over the last two years it has been deployed by prominent journalists and politicians as part of a new discourse about Islam in Britain. It has been turned into a weapon to categorise political opponents who are Muslim as separatist, illegitimate and dangerous. The independent Muslim MPs who won seats in 2024 on platforms opposing Israel's genocide in Gaza have been key targets. Now the term is being used to characterise the Green Party and its Muslim voters. 'Gorton and Denton is a beautifully diverse constituency, with thousands of residents who speak languages other than English' - Hannah Spencer, Green Party MP But contrary to Starmer's claim, the Greens have not referred to an endorsement by politician George Galloway in their campaign material, in any campaign video or in television appearances. Middle East Eye visited Gorton and Denton last week and went inside the Green Party's campaign headquarters, which was full of volunteers - diverse in ethnicity and age. MEE interviewed Hannah Spencer, now the MP for Gorton and Denton, a 34-year-old plumber, who said she was proud of her "white working-class background". Spencer campaigned heavily on local issues: “I want to bring people's bills down,” she said. “I think we need to look at rent controls. We have really high levels of people renting here in insecure accommodation.” She criticised rival candidate Goodwin for claiming in 2024 that "millions of British Muslims – millions of our fellow citizens – hold views that are fundamentally opposed to British values and ways of life". Spencer said: "I know from my friends who are Muslim, like from my neighbours who are Muslim, from the people I work with who are Muslim, that they have the same British values I do, and that's caring for each other, that's looking after each other, and it's working hard. "In the same way that I'm really proud to stick up for my white working-class roots, I'm really proud to stick up for my Muslim neighbours who are as British as I am." Was campaigning on Gaza sectarian? The Greens have consistently opposed British cooperation with Israel throughout its genocide in Gaza, calling for a full arms embargo and a ban on settlement goods, while labelling Israel's actions as genocide. Goodwin repeatedly accused the Greens of being "obsessed" with Gaza throughout the by-election campaign, while insisting that Britain needed to care for and "look after" Israel. This week, The Times quoted an unnamed senior Labour cabinet minister saying: "The Greens are whipping up hatred and deliberately raising the salience of Gaza. They’re hammering us." It is true that the Greens have repeatedly criticised the Labour government for cooperating militarily and politically with Israel throughout its genocide in Gaza - including by sharing intelligence from Royal Air Force surveillance flights over Gaza. But is that sectarian? Spencer told MEE the genocide in Gaza was a significant issue “across communities”, not just among Muslims, while many politicians and journalists have painted Gaza as a sectarian, niche and purely Muslim concern. 'People in this country, whether they're Muslim or Jewish... or even people without faith, can recognise that human rights and international law are important' - Zack Polanski, Green Party leader From the early weeks of the Israeli assault on Gaza, though, the majority of British public opinion has supported a ceasefire. In London’s regular pro-ceasefire marches, there has always been a large Jewish bloc. Within the Green Party, Muslim politicians like Mothin Ali, the co-deputy leader, have opposed Israeli actions in Gaza on the same basis - support for international law and human rights - as non-Muslim politicians have This means the Greens have been standing up for the rules-based order promoted by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and US President Franklin Roosevelt when they agreed to the Atlantic Charter in 1941. Is that sectarian? Green leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, said on the BBC on Friday that "we've got our own government not just complicit but actively enabling a genocide through the sharing of arms, intelligence. "And I think people in this country, whether they're Muslim or Jewish, as I am myself, or even people without faith, can recognise that human rights and international law are important." Another source of the sectarian claim was a Green campaign video in Urdu that went viral this week. Deputy Labour leader Lucy Powell accused the Greens of a “shameful attempt to manipulate the respected Muslim community”. Spencer told MEE: “Gorton and Denton is a beautifully diverse constituency, with thousands of residents who speak languages other than English. “I’m proud of our campaign, and of this video, which has been positive, inclusive and focused on the issues that matter most to local people: bringing down rents and bills, proper investment in public services, and rebuilding our NHS.” End of the Muslim bloc vote Use of the term sectarianism implies the existence of a coordinated bloc of Muslim voters driven by separatist concerns. The 2024 election actually saw the collapse of the country's historic Muslim bloc vote, which had long been exploited by Labour. In that election, Muslims voted for a diverse range of parties and candidates. This trend has only continued. When MEE visited Gorton and Denton last week, it was clear that Musl