It is the year of the by-election in British politics. In February disgruntled(不满的，恼怒的) voters in Manchester hammered a nail in the coffin(加速……的灭亡) of Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership by electing a Green MP. In June the northern constituency of Makerfield elected Andy Burnham in a landslide(压倒性胜利), with a mandate(授权，委托) to replace Sir Keir as prime minister. And in July, with Mr Burnham now at the helm(掌舵，处于领导地位), Greater Manchester elected a Labour mayor to replace him, confirming the prime minister’s electoral prowess(非凡的能力，英勇).
今年是英国政治中的补选之年。二月，曼彻斯特心怀不满的选民选出了一名绿党议员，给基尔·斯塔默爵士的首相任期敲响了丧钟。六月，北方梅克菲尔德选区以压倒性多数选举安迪·伯纳姆，授权他取代基尔爵士出任首相。七月，在伯纳姆先生掌舵下，大曼彻斯特又选出一位工党市长接替他的旧职，印证了这位首相的选举实力。
Now Londoners have their turn. On September 1st Sir Keir announced he was resigning as an MP. This triggered a by-election in his London constituency(选区) of Holborn and St Pancras, which stretches(延伸，绵延) from touristy Covent Garden to lively Camden Town and leafy Primrose Hill. The contest is an opportunity for Mr Burnham to show that he can extend his winning streak(连胜，连续获胜) beyond his native north-west England and stop the advance of the Greens in Labour’s urban heartlands(腹地，核心地带).
现在轮到伦敦人了。9月1日，基尔爵士宣布辞去议员职务。这引发了他所在的伦敦选区霍尔本和圣潘克拉斯的补选，该选区从游客如织的科文特花园延伸至热闹的卡姆登镇和绿树成荫的樱草山。这场竞争是伯纳姆先生展示自己能将连胜势头扩展到家乡英格兰西北部以外、并阻止绿党在工党城市腹地推进的机会。
In normal times Holborn and St Pancras would be a safe Labour seat. Young, diverse(多元的，多样的) and highly educated, the area has been represented by Labour since 1964. Between 2017 and 2024, however, Labour’s vote share fell from 70% to 49%. Andrew Feinstein, a left-wing pro-Palestine activist(活动人士，积极分子), won 19% of the vote as an independent candidate, drawing on(利用，凭借) the area’s large student and Muslim populations. The Green Party won 10%. Zack Polanski, the Greens’ outspoken(直言不讳的) leader, has announced that he will stand in(参加（选举），作为候选人) the by-election.
在正常情况下，霍尔本和圣潘克拉斯会是一个工党安全席位。该地区年轻、多元且受教育程度高，自1964年以来一直由工党代表。然而，在2017年至2024年间，工党的得票率从70%降至49%。左翼亲巴勒斯坦活动人士安德鲁·范斯坦作为独立候选人赢得了19%的选票，利用了该地区庞大的学生和穆斯林人口。绿党赢得了10%的选票。绿党直言不讳的领导人扎克·波兰斯基已宣布将参加补选。