UK Green Party Wins Local Election with 40% Share

The "recent local election" mentioned in the news card is the Gorton and Denton by-election on February 26, 2026. The Green Party candidate, Hannah Spencer, won with 40.7% of the vote. This was a significant victory as it was the Green Party's first-ever win in a UK parliamentary by-election. The seat was previously a safe Labour seat. The term "family voting" in the news card appears to be a reference to accusations made during the by-election, where it was alleged that multiple people were in a voting booth at the same time, or that voters were being pressured. However, there is no evidence that this practice benefited any single party or impacted the election result. Given this information, I can now proceed to write the detail expansion. I will provide context on the significance of the by-election win, the performance of other parties, the background of the new MP, and details on the "family voting" allegations. I will also touch on the broader implications for the UK political landscape, including the Green Party's recent growth and national polling figures. All of this information is available from the initial search results. Therefore, no further searches are required. Final Answer: The victory occurred in the Gorton and Denton by-election on February 26, 2026, marking the first time the Green Party has ever won a UK parliamentary by-election. The winning candidate, local plumber and councillor Hannah Spencer, secured 40.7% of the vote, overturning a Labour majority of over 13,000 from the 2024 general election. This result pushed the incumbent Labour Party into a distant third place with 25.4% of the vote, behind Reform UK which secured second place with 28.7%. The Conservative candidate received just 1.9% of the vote, losing their deposit. The election was called after the resignation of the sitting Labour MP, Andrew Gwynne, for health reasons. The "family voting" tactic mentioned refers to allegations of electoral malpractice made by an observer group called Democracy Volunteers during the by-election. The group reported observing multiple instances of more than one person entering a voting booth, or voters being influenced by others in the polling station. However, Nigel Farage of Reform UK, while reporting the claims, stated it "probably" did not alter the outcome, and Manchester City Council reported seeing no such issues. The win gives the Green Party its fifth seat in the House of Commons. The victory is seen as a sign of a continuing "Green surge," with party membership reportedly rising to over 180,000 and national polling averages placing them at 16%, a significant increase from 10% in September 2025. The result has been described as an "existential crisis" for the Labour Party, challenging the idea that it is the only progressive alternative to right-wing parties.