London Green Party has had a fantastic year of growth. With membership buoyed from the leadership of Zack Polanski, and a Labour Party tarnished by the stain of Sir Keir Starmer, we were able to get on more doors than ever before and expand our councillor base across London in the local elections.

None of that was easy. I know from my own experience as a Party Chair, Agent, Candidate and occasional Leaflet Artworker and Copywriter that skilling up new members, building people's confidence, scaling and surviving the stress of the experience was a battle.

In the next 12 months we need to work together to build a stronger campaign machine for London, so that we're ready for the Greater London Assembly Elections, the Mayor race, council by-elections and any potential snap General Election. I'm standing as Elections Officer for London because I believe my skills and twenty years of experience in campaigning and organising can help us build those stronger foundations for future success.


My plan for London

Read my full plan at https://markwhiley.com

I will be entirely focused on London campaigns. I hold no other roles in the party, and I will spend the year working together with our local parties, elected representatives, staff and other elected officers to ensure every local party has access to the support, skills and resources it needs to campaign effectively - no party left behind.

Regular mobilisation is a key focus for me. There are many local parties with an overwhelming number of members, and conversely parties that have a small number of active participants to take on every task that a best practice local party may undertake.

Phonebanking works to inform and engage both members and voters, and I'd like to get London Calling by creating a London-wide pool of enthusiastic Greens to be available to local parties for Action Days and other activities.

Key to any election strategy discussion is the consolidation of existing support, much of which may have been a protest vote against Keir Starmer's Labour, and communicating effectively "the Green difference" in our Town Halls and our open, collaborative approach to working with people.

That means listening and communicating well, learning from the best of the progressive left on communicating our message without being reliant on mainstream media (influencer strategy, holding press events etc.), and organising communities to create change.

While the Greater London Assembly elections and the Mayoralty should be the first big electoral test to prepare for, we also need to work with local parties and staff to begin developing the strategy to defend our seats and to take advantage of 2026's missed opportunities, particularly in wards with mixed party representation.


Why I can make that happen

If there's one thing I excel at it's process and structure. I've helped build strong campaign organisations in two London boroughs from a low membership base, with the local party's hard work resulting in the election of Barking & Dagenham's first councillors. Identifying where we need skills and resource and finding the volunteers for the job has been a constant for the past two years Chairing local parties.

My experience goes beyond my involvement in the Greens - since 2024. I've worn every hat, over twenty years of campaigning, including being on the coordination team of a successful local election and Mayoral campaign in Bristol. When living abroad, I organised with tech workers and founded a group, British in Berlin, organising British citizens in the wake of Brexit.

I will be accessible, transparent and collaborative, and work across our party to ensure that our message resonates with the challenges affecting people's everyday lives: the cost and conditions of living, housing and transport, and the threats facing our communities, nature and climate.