GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
www.GP.org
Monday, May 22, 2006
Contacts:
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, mclarty@greens.org
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene@greens.org
Greens to watch in 2006: Green candidates run strong campaigns for governor and other state offices
across the U.S.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green candidates are making news in dramatic campaigns for state office throughout the U.S.
Nationally well-known Green candidates include Malachy McCourt, brother of author Frank McCourt and himself an author, radio host, actor, Irish immigrant, and political activist, who has announced his campaign for Governor of New York; Pat LaMarche, Green nominee for Vice President in 2004 and now running for Governor of Maine; and Peter Camejo, who ran a strong gubernatorial campaign in the 2003 California recall race and was independent candidate Ralph Nader's running mate in the 2004 presidential election, and is running again in 2006 for Governor of California.
A state-based list of campaigns to watch in the 2006 mid-term elections is appended below. Other candidates will be
featured in future releases.
For more Green campaign listings, news, photos, and web sites, visit
gp.org/2006elections,
the GP candidate spotlight page, and Green elections
database, with a list of all 2006 candidates.
CALIFORNIA
The following candidates are running on the California Green 'MVP' (Million Votes for Peace) slate:
Peter Miguel Camejo is running for Governor as a Latino in a state where the immigration issue is major news. Mr. Camejo ran previously in 2002 and in a 2003 Recall Election, during which he was rated the winner by polls and the news media in a round of debates with Arnold Schwarzenegger and other candidates. Mr. Camejo is calling on cash-strapped California to collect $ tens of billions from corporations in the state which currently pay no taxes and from the state's wealthiest individuals, since the state's poorest now pay a tax rate that is 57% higher than that of the wealthiest taxpayers. Mr. Camejo also supports legislation that would pull the state's National Guard troops out of Iraq.
http://www.votecamejo.com
Donna Warren, candidate for Lt. Governor, asks voters to leave the comfort zones of the Democratic and Republican Parties and give California a chance. Immigration reform, said Warren, "must begin with a living wage for all employees. Black people in America understand fighting for an economic chance and dignity. We are all workers and we must unite as a working class to demand this country invest in job training and stop the outsourcing of American jobs."
<http://www.donnawarren.com>
Forrest Hill, a former Ralph Nader aide running for the hotly-contested Secretary of State spot, has already received significant media attention for his tough stand against Black Box voting. As the state's election chief, he will promote legislation to open up the voting process by instituting proportional voting, and giving immigrants, who are not yet citizens, voting rights in local elections.
<http://www.voteforrest.org>
CONNECTICUT
Cliff Thornton is running for Governor of Connecticut
with the endorsement of the Green Party and help from third parties and others to address the important issues facing the state, including education, the drug war, race, poverty, health care for all, and a living wage.
<http://www.votethornton.com>
ILLINOIS
Civil rights attorney Rich Whitney is making waves in his race for Governor of Illinois
by pledging to veto any further mobilization of the Illinois National Guard for duty in the illegal occupation of Iraq, fighting for badly needed tax and fiscal reforms, and promoting a proposed 'New Deal' for sustainable energy and sustainable transportation.
<http://www.whitneyforgov.org>
MAINE
On May 20 at 11:00am, gubernatorial candidate Pat LaMarche
delivered her 'State of the State' speech as keynote speaker at the Green Party Convention, which was held at the Center for Cultural Affairs in Portland. Ms. LaMarche, noting the number of infants housed in homeless shelters with their parents, asked attendees to bring diapers, blankets, toys, and other items for distribution to the shelters after the convention.
<http://www.pat2006.org>
MARYLAND
Ed Boyd, candidate for Governor and a veteran of the U.S. Navy, has joined the Baltimore Pledge of Resistance in its call for a full investigation into possible involvement of the Baltimore Police Dept. with NSA spying on the group's activities. Mr. Boyd has also called on Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner Martin O'Malley and Gov. Robert Ehrlich to return over $30,000 in campaign contributions that came from Constellation, the parent company of Baltimore Gas and Electric. BGE seeks to increase Marylanders' energy rates by 72% by July 1.
<http://www.EdBoydforGovernor.org>
MASSACHUSETTS
Grace Ross is the Massachusetts Green-Rainbow Party's candidate for Governor of. Her running mate for Lt. Governor is
Wendy Van Horne. On May 18, Ms. Ross's supporters picketed in front of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, the site of the first multi-party televised gubernatorial debate in Massachusetts, from which she has been excluded by MassINC, the debate's primary sponsor. "MassINC continues to stand by criteria that are easily picked apart and debunked with a little research, no longer apply and contradict the stated purpose of the debate. They claim not to mean to exclude only one candidate, but the sponsors seem to conceive that only millionaires and career politicians are worthy of the public's attention," said Ms. Ross.
<http://www.graceandwendy.org>
James O'Keefe, candidate for Treasurer of the Commonwealth, was the party's nominee for the same office in 2002. Mr. O'Keefe participated in all Treasurer candidate debates in 2002.
<http://www.jamesokeefe.org>
Dr. Jill Stein is the sole challenger to the 12-year incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth, with no Republican in the race. As part of her campaign for "Real Democracy - Real Solutions", she is calling for an end to "government by influence-peddling" by restoring the voter-mandated Clean Elections Law, and is declining campaign contributions from lobbyists and the officers of corporations that hire them. Dr. Stein advocates Instant Runoff Voting and guaranteed ballot security by banning electronic voting machines. An advocate for single-payer universal health care and a national spokesperson on children's health and the environment, Dr. Stein won praise as the 2002 Green-Rainbow candidate for Governor, and was voted winner in the online poll following a televised candidates' debate.
<http://www.jillstein.org>
Owen Broadhurst, running for State Representative in the 3rd Hampden District is the very first third party candidate for state representative in his region, and also the first openly bisexual candidate. He was recently endorsed by the United Auto Workers (UAW) Massachusetts State Community Action Program Council.
<http://www.owenbroadhurst.org>
NEW YORK
The New York candidates were nominated on May 20 as the state party's 'Peace Slate' to provide a choice on the ballot for voters opposed to the war in Iraq.
Videos of New York Green candidates can be viewed at <http://thirdplanetvideo.com/GPNYCandidates.html>.
Malachy McCourt, brother of author Frank McCourt and himself an author ('A Monk Swimming', New York Times bestseller), is running for Governor. "Peace is not just the absence of war; peace is where we are safe and secure in our lives and privacy," said Mr. McCourt, who supports demilitarizing the National Guard by bringing them home from Iraq and converting them into a civilian environmental corps.
Photo of Malachy McCourt: http://ccny.wordpress.com
<http://www.malachyforgovernor.com>
Howie Hawkins, nominee for the U.S. Senate, will challenge Sen. Clinton over her support for the war in Iraq, and will call for immediate return of U.S. troops and impeachment of President Bush. Mr. Hawkins, a member of the Teamsters Union, will also challenge the two major parties for failing to respond to global warming; he supports major investments in energy conservation, efficiency, and investment in renewable energy sources, which will create new jobs in New York.
<http://www.hawkinsforsenate.org>
Alison Duncan, for Lieutenant Governor: "New York's disadvantaged should not see the military as their only option for an education and an honest job. As Lt. Governor candidate, I will be campaigning for free public higher education and strong economic development initiatives for our state."
Rachel Treichler, for State Attorney General: "We are at war in Iraq against the wishes of most voters. This is because illegal barriers to voting and ballot access have allowed money to trump democracy in our electoral system. As Attorney General, I will protect our rights to vote and our rights to free and fair elections. We can't continue to let the short-term economic interests of a few override the long-term life, liberty and happiness of all."
<http://www.voterachel.org>
Julia Willebrand, for Comptroller: "World peace is central to the well-being of everyone including the people of New York. I will use the power of the Comptroller as sole trustee of $115 billion in retirement funds to enhance the financial and physical security of the people of New York by working toward peace. One such step will be joining other states' efforts to end the genocide in Darfur by divesting from companies doing business in Sudan."
OHIO
On May 1, the campaign for gubernatorial candidate
Bob Fitrakis and running mate Anita Rios for Lieutenant-Governor submitted over 11,000 signatures from Ohio voters who want to see Bob Fitrakis and other Green-endorsed candidates on the ballot this November. Mr. Fitrakis is a journalist who, writing in the Columbus Free Press <http://www.freepress.org>, helped expose widespread 2004 election irregularities in Ohio.
<http://www.bobforohio.com>
<http://www.fraudbusterbob.com/blog>
Tim Kettler is the only candidate for Ohio Secretary of State who has taken on Kenneth Blackwell, who current holds this office, to Federal Court for his role in the 2004 election irregularities, and will continue to demand accountability in state elections.
<http://www.sostim06.com>
PENNSYLVANIA
Marakay Rogers, candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania, has campaigned for single-payer universal health care and repeal for Pennsylvania's real property tax, which forces fixed income senior citizens out of their homes. Ms. Rogers opposes Gov. Ed Rendell's implementation of the state's new casino legislation, sharply criticizing plans to build a casino directly beside the historic and government-protected Gettysburg Battlefield. She is also lead plaintiff in a federal appeal to overturn restrictive state legislation that will obstruct third-party candidates from the ballot in November.
<http://www.geocities.com/mjr91/RogersforAG.html>
RHODE ISLAND
Jeff Toste is running unopposed for State Senate in District 5 (Providence), after the Democrat dropped out of the race; the Democratic Party is expected to name another candidate, but Mr. Toste now has a strong head start.
<http://www.votetoste.com>
SOUTH CAROLINA
Arnold Karr, a teacher in South Carolina's prison system, for Superintendent of Public Education, has won the Green Party nomination and the endorsement of the state AFL-CIO.
WISCONSIN
The Wisconsin Green Party has endorsed Nelson Eisman for Governor <http://www.wisconsingreenparty.org>.
MORE INFORMATION
Green Party of the United States
http://www.gp.org
1711 18th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009.
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193