Prominent Greens run for Governor

With Latinos leading the way

By David McCorquodale, Green Party of Delaware

Anita Rios for Governor of Ohio

Anita Rios is a long-time Green Party activ­ist in Ohio. Despite growing up with Span­ish as her first language in a family of eight children, she eventually earned her equivalency diploma and then a degree from the University of Toledo. She has been a union official, helping to negotiate contracts and is currently president of the Toledo Chapter of the National Organi­za­tion for Women. Rios was the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit over the Ohio recount in 2004.

She previously ran for Lt. Governor in 2010 and U.S. Senator in 2012. Rios is joined on the ticket by Bob Fitrakis for Lt. Governor. Fitrakis has written extensively about how electronic voting machines stole votes for Democratic candidates for Republicans in 2004 and acted as Rios’ attorney in the 2004 lawsuit. Greens in Ohio faced the challenge of having the party (along with the Libertarian Party) outlawed in the middle of their petition drives in 2013 by the Republican-controlled legislature. The Green Party used an ob­scure law that allows statewide candidates to appear on the ballot if they get 500 write-in votes in the primaries, which they were able to achieve. Under the current law, still being challenged in federal court, Rios must receive two percent of the vote in order for the party to keep ballot status.

“Neither major party has done enough to defend women, workers, and the natural resources that we depend on. It’s time to stand up and declare that an economy which generates low-wage part-time jobs over living-wage jobs is not acceptable,” said Rios.

Her platform includes significantly lowering tuition costs at state-funded colleges and universities, establishing a state-chartered bank, and calling for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. Rios also says she would advocate for the full legalization of cannabis and industrial hemp as a way of reducing law enforcement costs while expanding the economy.

For more information, see www.facebook.com/ RiosForGovernor

 

Paul Glover for Governor of Pennsylvania

Paul Glover is a long-time activist, beginning in the early 1970s in anti-war campaigning. Over the years he has been in­volved in community organizing and urban planning. He has participated in publishing magazines and written numerous articles. In 1978 he hiked across the United States, observing the effects of land use and population shifts on natural resources.

In Ithaca, NY he founded the Ithaca Health Alliance, the Ithaca Community News (named best website) and ran for Mayor in 2003. A major accomplishment was the creation of Ithaca HOURS, the country’s first bio-regional currency, ac­cepted by thousands of residents, including 500 businesses.

Since moving to Philadelphia in 2004, Glover has helped to develop: PHILAHEALTH, a member-owned health financing system; Philadelphia Orchard Project, placing gardens in vacant lots; and the Patch Adams Free Clinic. He has written a book on Green jobs, organized a network to find those jobs, and lectures at Temple University.

As governor, Glover proposes: to establish the Green Labor Administra­tion (GLAD) to create 500,000 green jobs state­wide; expand Medicare everywhere based on regional health co-ops; and establish a state bank and regional stock exchanges dedicated to ecology and social justice. He would shift the budget from prisons to schools and from road building to rails. He would confront corrupt bankers and bureaucrats. He would ban hydrofracking and require GMO labeling.

According to Glover, “When conservatives don’t conserve, and liberals don’t liberate, Greens become centrists looking to solve problems with our schools, create jobs, improve healthcare, clean air and water, and secure homes.

For more information, see: www.paulglover.org

Luis J. Rodriguez for Governor of California

Luis Rodriguez is a 60-year-old Chicano poet and best-selling author. He has writ­ten fifteen books, including Always Run­ning, La Vida Loca, and Gang Days in L.A. a memoir of gang life. He co-founded the nonprofit cultural space Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore. This organization has raised over a million dollars in the culturally deprived Northeast San Fer­nan­do Valley. Rodriguez has also written for numerous magazines, covering struggles in Mexico and Central America, including the contra war against the Sandinistas in Nicaragua. Much of Rodriguez’s work has been devoted to prevention/intervention workshops for troubled youth and urban peace projects, including in Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as international peace and youth development efforts in Mexico, Central and South America, Italy and England.

In 2012, he was the vice-presidential candidate with Rocky Anderson for president on the U.S. Justice Party ticket.

In Rodriguez’ own words: “I’m convinced we need more voices to address our growing impoverishment, our deepening injustice system, and the continual poisoning of our environment.… Our present governor, Jerry Brown, has recently stood up for immigrant rights and other important issues…. But with Governor Brown’s budget cuts, his stand on prisons, the ensuing growth of poverty under his watch, he’s just another bead on a long string of un­responsive pro-corporate politicians. There is an incremental and unequal way we seem to be moving. A so-called budget crunch has forced many cuts to programming, services, health care, education, and more. For example, we had a single payer health care law passed, but was vetoed by our governors, including Jerry Brown. We’ve had major funding come into development projects but removed from the poorest schools, colleges and libraries. Prison and law enforcement budgets are obscene, but funding for rehabilitation, treatment, alternative sentencing, and mental health services is scarce. I’m running because I know there is money, there are resources, especially among the people, that there is genius and boldness everywhere, but it’s not being drawn out or tapped into. I want to help change that.”

Jena Goodman joins Rodriguez as the candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Cal­ifornia. Goodman served over 7,000 students as president of the Associated Stu­dents of Napa Valley College from 2012-2013. She is also former chair of the So­lano County Green Party. She is currently a student at UC Davis studying biodiversity and ecology. Goodman believes Califor­nia’s public schools, colleges and universities hold the key to fixing many of the problems facing California.

On June 3, Green Party candidates in California participated in the top two primary. The Green Party of California and other parties have filed a lawsuit opposing this type of primary, which requires all candidates to participate in one primary, with only the top two votes receivers moving on to the general election. Rodriguez received almost 46,000 votes or 1.5 percent, while Goodman received over 70,000 votes or 2.3 percent. The Rodriguez campaign stated: “The Rodriguez Campaign will continue through the November general election and beyond as an organizing center and voice of the people on the issues of poverty, education, social injustice and environmental destruction. We ask that all supporters remain in place and be prepared to assist in the next stage of this struggle.”

For more information, see: www.rodriguezforgovernor.org