Independent Green Party of Virginia Progresses with Candidates in Every Congressional District
One good sign of a party’s power is its effectiveness in carrying out bread-and-butter campaign tasks, tasks like getting the thousands of signatures to put party candidates on the ballot. Independent Political Report notes that the the Independent Green Party of Virginia has managed the feat of putting a candidate for the House of Representatives onto the ballot in each of Virginia’s 11 congressional districts.
The IGVA — which split off from the Green Party of Virginia and is not recognized by the national Green Party in the United States — is out-hustling the Green Party of Virginia in marked fashion. While the GPVA has not put out a newsletter since last year and makes no mention of candidates running for office in 2010, the Independent Green Party of Virginia has publicly identified each of its candidates and provided each of them with promotional material.
While the IGVA is occupying the “Green” name space in nominal terms, it is divergent from the Ten Key Values in action, restricting its environmental agenda as a party to the endorsement of passenger rail for Virginia. IGVA congressional candidate Jeffrey A. Clark openly advocates for anti-abortion, anti-marriage equality, anti-immigration, oil drilling deregulation, anti-health-care-reform, and pro-tax-cut policies in his campaign. This is not a typical “Green Party” approach.
What makes a “Green”? Will Virginia conservatives be willing to vote for conservative candidates who sport the “Green” label this November? Will members of the Green Party of Virginia be inclined to vote for IGVA candidates this fall because the name “Green Party” is part of the line on the ballot?
We win when we get on the ballot. We invite other “Greens” to join us: stand up and get on the ballot. Advocate for building high-speed Rail nationwide.
Your article ends in a question, so let me answer:
Gail pulled over 26,000 votes in the Allen-Webb contest in 2006; and 20K plus again in the Warner-Gilmore race. This despite none of those allowing her to participate in their tightly scripted debates.
True independents, those who do not swing from one media-covered party to the other. There are independents all over getting hundreds of thousands of votes for little or no money spent.
Make a difference this year by choosing the alternative in all 11 congressional districts.
People are fed up with the king-maker created polished-ticians. So I encourage others to run or at least stand for office. Contact us. We can help.
Amen to the remarks of Gail for Rail Parker and Joseph Oddo, co-founder of the Independent Green Party of Virginia.
We have a civic duty to provide a positive alternative on the ballot. That’s what we have devoted over two decades to doing in Virginia as Independent Green Party folk.
Let us honor and salute the hard work of hundreds of Independent Green Party endorsee/nominees over those years for their courage to be on the ballot .
Our faith in America, Americans, and Virginians leads me to believe we will pass our 2009 record of 27 Indy Green endorsee and nominees in 2011.
Thanks for the post, and the understanding of all the selfless work this takes. Done by your Independent Green Party of Virginia.