Labour has selected Camden Council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali, who arrived in the UK as a child refugee from Somalia in the 1990s, as its candidate for the by-election in Sir Keir Starmer's former seat of Holborn and St Pancras, to be held on 8 October. The contest follows Starmer's announcement that he is standing down as an MP after being ousted as prime minister by Andy Burnham, and it matters because Labour faces a genuine fight to retain a seat it has held since 1983, with the Greens seen as the strongest challengers.

Abdi-Wali, who has led Camden Council since May, said she wanted to "give back the hope" the constituency gave her family. The Greens are yet to confirm their candidate, with leader Zack Polanski facing competition from local councillor Hamza Chowdhury, who criticised "famous" candidates being parachuted into seats; Polanski dismissed the jibe, saying he knows the area well. At the 2024 general election Starmer won with 48.9% of the vote, ahead of independent Andrew Feinstein (18.9%) and the Greens (10.4%), with the Conservatives, Reform and Liberal Democrats trailing further behind—results partly attributed to Labour voters protesting Starmer's stance on Gaza, while the Greens have since gained ground in local Camden elections.