UNITED KINGDOM — Britons will vote for town councils and two regional legislatures on May 7, 2026, in campaigns dominated by allegations of hate speech and a rise in antisemitic incidents across the United Kingdom. Two Jewish men, one in his 70s, were stabbed last week in Golders Green in an attack police declared a terrorist incident.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer visited the site of the stabbing and was heckled by members of the Jewish community who accused him of failing to keep them safe. Thousands of mostly peaceful pro-Palestinian protesters have been arrested in the United Kingdom during a wave of demonstrations over Israel's actions in Gaza, and there have been multiple attacks on British Jews.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Starmer to ban pro-Palestinian marches. "These are no longer protests. They are now being used as a cover for antisemitic activity," Badenoch said.

The Green Party said Starmer's measures violated free speech by outlawing support for some pro-Palestinian groups. The Green Party is the only major political party in the United Kingdom led by a Jewish person and is forecast to win votes away from Labour.

Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who has suspended party members for antisemitic comments and has been the target of antisemitic cartoons, said: "I am both pro-Palestinian and I'm Jewish. I care about Jewish safety. There's no conflict in those positions."

The Labour Party released a campaign video showing a woman sitting in darkness musing about antisemitism, criticizing Zionism and repeating conspiracy theories. The woman identifies herself as Jewish and is presented as reading the words of rival Green Party candidates. The video includes the line, "The leaders of Israel and Gaza conspired to carry out what happened on October 7 for financial gain," and an antisemitic slur: "The money-grubbing thieves have built mountains of money over centuries. Jewish cockroaches."

Rabbi Charley Baginsky, a grandchild of Holocaust survivors, said: "At the moment, it feels like every conversation that we have is about antisemitism."

Baginsky also said: "When people are just using it for their campaigns, what happens when one party is seen to be pro Jews and another party is seen to be pro parts of the Muslim community and anti-Israel rhetoric, which spills into antisemitism."