State Green Party Press Release

Maryland Green Party

Schade Has it Made: Green Candidate On Ballot for Maryland District 20
Delegate Race.

For Immediate Release
Press contact: Bob Guldin (301) 891-1038
Chris Driscoll (443) 415-5077

August 5, 2002

The Montgomery County Board of Elections announced today that Green Party candidate Linda Schade is the first -- and to date the only --person definitely to qualify to be on the ballot for the Maryland District 20 Delegate's race.

Officials in Rockville said that Schade's supporters had turned in 675 valid signatures, well over the 466 required. More than 88 percent of the signatures on petitions were found valid -- a marked contrast to other Washington-area candidates who have stumbled in the petitioning process. All petitions for Schade werecirculated by volunteers.

Other candidates for the District 20 race will compete in the September 10 primary election. Schade was nominated by the Maryland Green Party and the Montgomery County Green Party and is on the ballot without having to run in a primary.

Two other Green candidates -- Rick Kunkel in State House District 42 and Bob Lewis running for St. Mary's County Commissioner -- have also qualified for the ballot in Maryland. Dave Gross in State House District30 and George Law in Anne Arundel County Council District 2 are also expected to be on the November ballot as Greens.

Schade, an active critic of corporate influence on the electoral process, is running on a platform of Fresh Air, Clean Politics and Corporate Accountability. She does not accept corporate or PAC money, choosing instead to accept contributions from individuals only.

"Everywhere I go, voters are outraged to learn that corporate contributions affect legislators right here in District 20," Schade says. "When they learn that our fresh air is being sacrificed for developer money, and our social services are collapsing to fund tax breaks for Marriott and Discovery, they are moved to action."

The Maryland Green Party, which collected over 17,000signatures in 2000 to become a recognized party, has a pending lawsuit against the state, challenging the constitutionality and fairness of the law requiring a separate petition drive for its candidates. The case is currently on appeal before the State Court of Appeals, Maryland's highest court, which could deliver a ruling any day.

Schade contends that the election law, which applies to recognized parties other than Democrats and Republicans, hurts the chances that third-party candidates will run for office. "This anti-democratic petition requirement is designed by the Democratic and Republican parties to stifle competition," Schade said. "The citizens of Maryland deserve better."

http://www.lindaschade.org
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