LONDON (AP) — Britain’s governing Labour Party was declared winner of a special election in London on Friday, dealing a blow to the leader of the fast-growing Green Party, who is facing a backlash over the party’s anti-Zionist stance and doubts about whether he can continue to lead the party from outside the House of Commons.
Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali won the contest for Holborn and St. Pancras, the district left vacant by the resignation of former Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with 12,292 votes, 45% of the total. Green leader Zack Polanski got 8,928 votes, just under 33%.
Abdi-Wali, who came to Britain from Somalia as a child refugee, said after the result was announced that she was honored to represent an area that had given her opportunities in life.
“I hope this moment also says something about who gets to belong,” said Abdi-Wali, leader of the local authority, Camden Council. “For people who look like me, I hope they see themselves reflected in this place and know that their path too belongs here.”
The Greens have grown rapidly under the “eco-populist” Polanski, broadening their message beyond environmental concerns to focus on issues including the cost of living, legalization of drugs and support for the Palestinian cause.
They have positioned themselves as an alternative to Labour for left-liberal voters, and gained momentum when they beat Labour in a special election last year.
But some members think the party has moved too far from its environmentalist roots, and Polanski’s campaign was overshadowed by the Green Party’s decision earlier this month to declare Zionism, the political movement for a Jewish homeland, a form of racism.
The motion, approved by a vote of party members, has been condemned by most elected Green lawmakers, divided the party and alarmed many British Jews. Israel declared the motion antisemitic and barred Polanski, who is Jewish, from entering the country.
Polanski told Sky News on Friday that it is “difficult being leader of any party, particularly the Green Party.”
“But I signed up for that difficult job and I’m more than ready to continue,” he said.
Britain's Labour Party candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali after being declared the winner of the Holborn and St Pancras by-election in London, Friday Oct. 9, 2026. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)
Britain's Green Party leader Zack Polanski after he was defeated in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election in London, Friday Oct. 9, 2026. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)
Britain's Labour Party candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali speaks after being declared the winner of the Holborn and St Pancras by-election in London, Friday Oct. 9, 2026. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)
MIAMI (AP) — Residents boarded up windows and stacked sandbags Thursday while thousands of National Guard soldiers were deploying in anticipation of Hurricane Isaias, which packed swift winds and threatened to bring a storm surge with devastating floods to the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Isaias is the first hurricane of the Atlantic season and was expected to usher in dangerous conditions in the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall late Friday. Heavy rain and flooding were possible into the weekend as far north as Tennessee and North Carolina.
The Category 2 hurricane is most likely to strike along the Alabama-Florida state line and bring life-threatening storm surge across Pensacola Bay, according to the National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama. But there’s a small chance it could hit further west and have a major impact on Mobile, or further east and have a strong effect on the Florida cities of Pensacola and Destin.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Simon, which formed as a tropical storm on Wednesday off of Mexico and became a hurricane late Thursday, was forecast to strengthen into a Category 4 hurricane.
Isaias had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (165 kph), according to the hurricane center. It was headed north-northeast at 14 mph (22 kph) and was centered about 230 miles (370 kilometers) south of the mouth of the Mississippi River.
A hurricane warning was in effect from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the Bay-Gulf County line in Florida, the hurricane center said. A storm surge warning was in effect from the mouth of the Mississippi to the Suwannee River.
Coastal communities moved quickly to prepare Thursday, as Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey ordered non-residents to immediately evacuate Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Dauphin Island. Videos on social media showed traffic at a standstill on a highway leading out of Gulf Shores, where double-red beach flags signaled water access was closed.
At least four Florida school districts canceled late-week classes, while several counties announced mandatory evacuations for some coastal areas. The governors of Florida and Alabama declared states of emergency for dozens of counties, with Florida's Ron DeSantis saying about 5,000 National Guard troops were expected to mobilize by Friday.
On Dauphin Island, a 15-mile (24-kilometer) barrier island off the Alabama coast, officials encouraged voluntary evacuations, particularly on its popular western section, which is vulnerable to storm surge.
Mayor Jeff Collier said he did not anticipate substantial damage, “but at the same time, these things are very fickle and a little jog here or there, or some last-minute increase in strength — we just have to be prepared for the worst.”
Water from the storm surge and high tide could reach heights of 5 to 7 feet (1.5 to 2 meters) in parts of Alabama and Florida, forecasters said. Isaias also could dump up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain on coastal areas and spawn tornadoes overnight Friday into Saturday from Alabama to the Florida Panhandle and southwestern Georgia. The hurricane is expected to quickly weaken after coming ashore.
The National Weather Service warned of possible “long-duration power outages.”
Isaias developed more than four months into the Atlantic hurricane season and was one day short of tying a 121-year-old record for the area’s latest-forming hurricane. That record dates to 1905, when the year’s first Atlantic hurricane formed on Oct. 8.
The Atlantic hurricane season has been unusually quiet this year because of a strong El Niño, which disrupts storm formation over the Atlantic. Storm activity has been above average in the Pacific, where Hurricane Simon formed. Farther north, Tropical Storm Rachel was expected to reach Baja California, Mexico, and Southern California this weekend.
Isaias is expected to strike a swath of coastline that’s familiar with major hurricanes.
One of the 20th century’s worst storms, Hurricane Camille, killed more than 250 people after hitting land near Waveland, Mississippi, in 1969. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 razed neighborhoods in Mississippi, flooded New Orleans and killed nearly 1,400 people. And Hurricane Michael leveled homes and buildings near Panama City, Florida, in 2018.
Ahead of the storm, oil and gas producers shut down a significant share of offshore production in the Gulf, which accounts for almost 15% of crude pumped annually in the U.S.
As of Thursday, about 63% of the oil production in the region had been temporarily halted, taking nearly 1.3 million barrels a day off the market, according to the Marine Minerals Administration. It said 121 of the Gulf’s 371 manned oil platforms had been evacuated.
With oil prices already high, the production cuts are steep enough to affect markets, though other Gulf hurricanes have caused larger disruptions, said Jim Burkhard, global head of crude oil market research for S&P Global Energy. More concerning, he said, is whether Isaias strikes as a powerful storm near refineries.
As it moves inland, Isaias might also disrupt Saturday’s college football showdown between rivals Georgia and Alabama, a game President Donald Trump planned to attend.
In Loxley, a small Alabama community where county officials urged voluntary evacuations, Nichole Eubanks and her husband prepared to ride out the storm on their farm, which is home to dozens of animals, including pigs, donkeys and about 20 rescued cats.
They planned to put contact information on the hooves of their goats, donkeys and pigs in case they got loose.
“It’s definitely scary, and you never really know where these storms are going to go and how bad it’s going to be until it gets there,” said Eubanks, 35.
In the Alabama fishing village of Bayou La Batre, Tony Rice and Lance Connor installed doors on their fishing boat Thursday to protect the vessel. The boat was one of many moored there, and Rice said they planned to move it to a less-crowded spot to decrease the chances of it bumping into others.
In Pensacola, Florida, officials said the airport will close to commercial flights Friday morning. Mayor D.C. Reeves urged residents to check on older adult neighbors and others who might need help.
“Obviously no need to panic at this point,” Reeves told a news conference. “This is really about preparation.”
Rico reported from Atlanta and Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut. Also contributing were Associated Press reporters Kim Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama; Hallie Golden in Seattle; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia; Laura Turbay in Little Rock, Arkansas; and Julie Walker in New York.
Daniel and Brand Harp, of Lebanon Tenn., here on vacation, pack their belongings to evacuate in the morning as Hurricane Isaias approaches Pensacola Beach, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
People walk on the beach at sunset as Hurricane Isaias approaches Pensacola Beach, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
A flag flutters in the wind outside a home as the Gulf Coast braces for Hurricane Isaias’ expected landfall in Dauphin Island, Alabama, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
A home is boarded up with plywood ahead of Hurricane Isaias’ expected landfall along the Gulf Coast in Dauphin Island, Alabama, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Mike Howard, foreground, and Joshua Brown board up Perdido Key Sports Bar as Hurricane Isaias approaches Perdido Key, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Residents line up to refuel at Costco Wholesale Gas Station ahead of Hurricane Isaias' expected landfall along the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
A resident walks to his vehicle after filling up a gas container at the Costco Wholesale Gas Station ahead of Hurricane Isaias' expected landfall along the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Gaspar Amalla pulls his boat out of the water as Hurricane Isaias passes through the Gulf of Mexico, north of Progreso, Yucatan state, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Zetina)
Boat owner Tony Rice, foreground, and his friend Lance Connor haul doors onto his boat to secure it as Hurricane Isaias approaches Bayou La Batre, Ala., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Boat owner Tony Rice prepares to haul doors onto his boat to secure it as Hurricane Isaias approaches Bayou La Batre, Ala., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Residents pick up sandbags for storm preparation at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center ahead of Hurricane Isaias' expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Residents pick up sandbags for storm preparation at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center ahead of Hurricane Isaias' expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Isaias surging toward the U.S. Gulf Coast on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via AP)
Residents pick up sandbags at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center as they prepare for Hurricane Isaias expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Residents pick up sandbags for storm preparation at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center ahead of Hurricane Isaias, expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Residents pick up sandbags for storm preparation at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center ahead of Hurricane Isaias' expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, October 8, 2026, in Mobile, Alabama (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
Residents pick up sandbags at the James Seals Jr. Parks & Recreation Center as they prepare for Hurricane Isaias expected landfall along the Gulf Coast, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Octavio Jones)
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Isaias in the Gulf of Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via AP)
This GOES-19 GeoColor satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and taken at 4:57 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, shows Tropical Storm Simon, bottom center, in the Pacific Ocean, off the southwestern coast of Mexico, and Tropical Storm Isaias, upper right, east of Mexico in the Gulf of Mexico. (NOAA via AP)
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Tropical Storm Isaias off the eastern coast of Mexico on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via AP)
