The Green Party's newly selected candidate for the Makerfield by-election, Chris Kennedy, withdrew from the race just hours after his announcement following scrutiny of social media posts in which he reportedly labelled an arson attack on Jewish ambulances in north London a 'false flag' operation.
Candidate Withdraws Amid Controversy
Chris Kennedy, a registered nurse and child safeguarding specialist, was selected as the party's candidate on Thursday morning but stepped down by early evening. The party initially cited 'personal and family reasons' for his departure, but it has since emerged that questions were raised about a series of posts shared by Mr Kennedy online.
According to reports in The Times, Mr Kennedy had circulated an Instagram video referring to the arrests of two men over the Golders Green ambulance arson incident as 'total bulls*** to keep the false flag flying'. He is also said to have reshared material from a user described as a 'proud ethno-nationalist', which questioned the official response to the attack.
Party Response
A Green Party spokesperson said the posts did not reflect the party's views and confirmed they had been discussed with Mr Kennedy. 'These posts don't reflect the views of The Green Party,' the spokesperson said. 'We have spoken to Chris about these posts, and he has now deleted them. He apologises for the offence caused.'
Mr Kennedy reportedly shared a post by Hugh Anthony, who describes himself as a 'proud ethno-nationalist', that said the response to the arson attack in Golders Green on March 23 made 'no sense'. Anthony wrote: 'How does someone manage to burn 3 ambulances, get the entire country in uproar, make the government put 264 more police units into the community, make the King become a patron of a charity, and increase the terror threat level in the UK, only to be put on bail? This makes no sense.'
Political Context
The rapid collapse of the candidacy comes amid a wider political backdrop in which the Greens had been positioning themselves for a high-profile contest in Makerfield, a seat viewed as a key battleground between Reform and Labour. Green Party leader Zack Polanski had previously described Reform UK as the central threat in the contest, arguing the party 'seeks to divide our communities rather than uniting them'. He has framed the election as an opportunity to challenge what he called the 'status quo' in Westminster politics.
The by-election itself was triggered after Labour MP Josh Simons stepped down, creating a route for a contest that had already been expected to draw national attention. Kennedy's brief campaign launch had earlier focused on cost-of-living pressures, public services and housing, with the candidate saying voters deserved 'real support' and pledging policies on 'warmer homes, lower bills, and a fairer economy'.
Next Steps
The party reiterated that his withdrawal stood, adding that nominations would be reopened so a replacement candidate could be selected ahead of polling day. A party spokesperson said: 'We believe people in Makerfield deserve a real choice at this by-election, and the Green Party will be standing to offer exactly that.'
The Green Party said previously: 'We wish Chris the best and understand that family has to come first. As a party, we are re-opening nominations now because we believe people in Makerfield deserve a real choice at this by-election, and the Green Party will be standing to offer exactly that. Across the country, more and more voters are turning away from the old parties and looking for politicians who will genuinely stand up for their communities.'
Nominations for a replacement candidate will open tomorrow and a selection meeting is planned for Monday evening.
