Public support for the current Labour government is declining amongst the British population, including those who voted for the party in the 2024 general election.
Many are redirecting their support towards alternative parties.
YouGov polls tell a story of an increasingly negative public opinion of Keir Starmer’s Labour government.
In October, 64% of those polled didn’t believe Labour had a clear direction moving forward, demonstrating a significant decline in the likelihood of voters choosing Labour in the next general election.
Two parties in particular have gained traction, both experiencing surges in membership and media coverage; the Green Party, which recently elected London Assembly member Zack Polanski as its leader, and Your Party, launched in July by former Labour MPs Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn.
In October, the Green Party surpassed 100,000 paid memberships, seeing a 45% increase in paid support since the appointment of Polanski as leader.
Similarly, Your Party saw over 800,000 free sign-ups in late August. Many attribute the success of Your Party to the co-founders: Corbyn as a long-standing socialist figure, and Sultana as an emerging favourite of younger voters.
Your Party have not released an official manifesto yet; however, many signees note Corbyn and Sultana’s stances on prevalent issues – the Israel-Gaza Crisis, implementation of a wealth tax and pro-immigration policy included – as attractive to voters.
However, recent public divisions in Your Party could impact their popular trajectory. In September, Sultana, in a public statement, accused Corbyn of leading a “sexist boys’ club” following an apparent unauthorised email announcing paid membership.
Comparatively, the Green Party has been praised for critical public statements on Israel’s actions in Gaza, wealth tax, supportive stances on migration and the recognition of the growing housing crisis in the UK. In his introductory remarks at the 2025 Green Party Conference, Zac Polanski declared the party a “politics of hope.”
When asked whether divisions in Your Party benefited the Greens in a BBC interview, Polanski replied:
“I really like Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, and my door’s always open for conversations.”
Tom Atkins-Green, from the University of Sheffield Green Party, spoke to us about their perspective as a student and candidate in the Graves Park ward:
“Green’s can restore hope lost to Labour and take the fight to reform. We are up and down the country, in our pubs, in our parks, in our schools and in our homes, we are fighting to make hope normal again.”
Sheffield residents’ support for the Green Party has more than doubled in the past 6 months, with many new supporters identifying as students and young adults.
Many people are worried that by competing against each other rather than working together, neither party will secure enough votes in the upcoming elections to defeat their main political rivals: currently Labour, the Conservatives, and, to a growing degree, Reform UK.
Supporters from both parties have expressed a preference for a merger between the Greens and Your Party.
This is not an uncommon strategy; for example, in the Netherlands, the Green Left and Labour parties merged in an effort to compete against the far-right PVV party in the October general election.
The newly formed group is currently polling just 4% behind the PVV, indicating potential for success.
Though many have encouraged a joint Green – Your Party across social media, nothing yet has been said by representatives of either party to suggest that a merger could take place in the future.
For now, there appears to be a high chance that the Greens and Your Party will continue to run against each other, risking a divide across the left wing of British politics.
