Green party surging as Polanski's social media strategy woos the young

When Zack Polanski became leader of the Green party in September, one of his first moves was to launch a podcast. His message was clear: the Greens were going to succeed where Labour hasn't and use social media to challenge Reform UK.

- Rachael Healy

"Nigel Farage has more TikTok followers than the rest of the MPs put together. If that's not a sign that this Labour government does not have a grip on media strategy, I don't know what is," said Polanski.

Two months later and the strategy appears to be reaping rewards. The Greens have risen to 16% in latest polling, one point behind the government, and more than doubled membership to 150,000. But can they turn social media likes into votes?

Alex, 34, from Bury joined the Greens last year but says he has only been spurred to become active within the party since Polanski's election. "His social media is a huge part of why me and many other people joined or got more involved," he said.