The Greens are perfectly poised to become a major force on the British left | Matthew Butcher

Under new leaders Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer, the party can meet voters’ demand for progressive policies

After a short campaign, and the first election since 2012 with no incumbent and no clear favourite, Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer are the new co-leaders of the Green party of England and Wales, and they take the helm with the wind in their party’s sails.

The new leaders focused their pitch on Denyer’s position as candidate for the top target seat of Bristol West, and ex-deputy Ramsay’s long experience of winning elections for the party. Tamsin Omond and current deputy leader Amelia Womack ran an impressive, energetic campaign – but Denyer and Ramsay, whose campaign was backed by Caroline Lucas, won by a close margin. Reassuringly for many Greens, the candidate who was at the centre of a row over trans right, Shahrar Ali, got just over 20% of the vote in the first round, and will surely now end his near-consistent presence in leadership contests as his vote share slipped.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Y8TlMf