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WASHINGTON, D.C. --
Green Party candidates for governor in Maine and Massachusetts are
challenging their big-money Democratic and Republican competition with
intense door-to-door campaigns in accord with recently enacted
"Clean Elections" reforms in those states. "Even after
passing the minimal reforms of the McCain-Feingold bill, Democrats and
Republicans are still addicted to big corporate campaign checks,"
said Tom Sevigny, a Connecticut Green Activist and member of the party's
national Steering Committee. "They're already looking for loopholes
in the new law. Greens reject that kind of influence, and we support
democratic reforms like public funding of election
campaigns."
While Jonathan Carter of Maine and Jill Stein of Massachusetts are
running their campaigns according to the new Clean Elections rules, the
Democratic and Republican candidates in those states continue to accept
the kind of corporate lobbyists' money that has compromised and
corrupted politics and public policy. "Americans are disgusted and
outraged at the hijacking of democracy by corporate money," said
Stuart Shaw, spokesperson for New Jersey Clean Money United and a member
of the Green Party of New Jersey (Bergen County). "The Enron
collapse revealed the extent to which these lobbies have purchased favor
from both the Clinton and Bush Administrations and from both Democrats
and Republicans in Congress. It is exactly this situation we are facing
in New Jersey which has resulted in a financial crisis, a service
crisis, and a environmental crisis. We are gearing up so that New Jersey
citizens can join us to get rid of the Enron donor-donee
system."
MAINE: Jonathan Carter, the Green candidate for governor of Maine, has
collected the 2000 signatures from 10,000 voters registered in the Green
Party. He must now collect 2500 $5 contributions to the Maine Clean
Elections Fund from individual registered voters in the state, in order
to qualify for public financing. The signature drive involved hundreds
of volunteers working throughout the state, re-organizing lists and
researching addresses, and traveling miles to the doors of many voters.
"This historic signature collection was accomplished by a
door-to-door effort carried out by citizens of all political stripes.
This was truly a 'We the People' effort," said Carter. Maine's new
law also requires that candidates who qualify for Clean Elections
funding must not accept donations from any outside entity, ensuring that
the candidate owes no allegiance to lobbies seeking favors and
influence. Before qualifying, a candidate may accept no more than $100
from any individual and no money from PACs, special interests, or
businesses. The Carter campaign has already begun the next challenge of
raising the required citizens' contributions. "The importance of
Clean Elections in returning our government to the people cannot be
overstated," said Carter. "While other candidates have chosen
the power base of special interests, the Carter campaign's power base
will be the citizens of this great state. We will work hard to gain
their trust and support."
MASSACHUSETTS: In the other Clean Money campaign, Massachusetts
gubernatorial candidate Jill Stein is encouraged by Carter's effort in
Maine. "This is a real boost to us to see Carter qualify,"
said Stein. "The timing, however, couldn't be better for launching
the credible alternative we offer to politics as usual. With a crisis in
health care and housing, an unraveling environment, and economic hard
times for so many, people are catching on that the reign of big money
politics as usual has not served us well. Jonathan Carter's qualifying
will energize our efforts even more. We hope to be following close
behind him." Stein is a medical doctor who lives in Lexington with
her two children and her husband, a surgeon at New England Medical
Center in Boston. Attracted to the Greens by the 2000 Nader campaign,
she says her gubernatorial run allows her to campaign for important
solutions to critical problems, solutions such as single-payer universal
health care, a major goal of the Green Party.
Green Party Contacts:
Nancy Allen, Media Coordinator, 207-326-4576, nallen@acadia.net
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, scottmclarty@yahoo.com
More Information:
The Green Party of the United States http://gpus.org
& http://www.gp.org
Jonathan Carter campaign for Governor of Maine http://www.cartergov.com
Johanna Hill, Press Secretary, 207-522-1067, johanna@cartergov.com
Tom Fusco, Campaign Manager, 207-729-8104, tom@cartergov.com
Jill Stein campaign for Governor of Massachusetts http://www.jillwill.org
& http://www.jillforgov.org
Andrew Hinkle, Press Secretary, 617-628-7493, andrew@jillwill.org
Green Party gubernatorial candidates in 2002:
Index: http://www.gp.org/patience.html
Alaska: Desa Jacbosson
California: Peter Miguel Camejo http://www.votecamejo.org
Iowa: Jay Robinson http://jay_l_robinson.blogspot.com
Maine: Jonathan Carter http://www.cartergov.com
Massachusetts: Jill Stein http://www.jillforgov.org
Michigan: Douglas Campbell http://www.migreenguv.org
Minnesota: Ken Pentel
New Mexico: David Bacon
Pennsylvania: Michael Morrill http://www.michaelmorrill.org
Texas: Rahul Mahajan
Wisconsin: Jim Young http://www.young4governor.org
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