January
Election Report: Green Party in 2023 Elections
At least 44 Green Party candidates from across the U.S. ran in General Elections on November 7, 2023. At least 15 Greens were elected. Twenty-one Greens ran in Connecticut, five in Maine, three each in Mississippi, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, two each in Indiana, Michigan and Mississippi, and one each in Colorado, Michigan, Ohio and Virginia.
Among the fifteen Greens elected were for mayor (1), city council (3), school board (3), water board (1), constable (1), board of assessment appeals (2), zoning board of appeals alternate (2) and taxing district board (2). Six of nine Green incumbents were re-elected.
Among the 44 races, four were for partisan state office and 39 for non-state, non-Federal office. With 15 wins in those 40 races, that is a 37.5% winning percentage. Earlier in 2023, 40 Greens ran in similar non-state, non-Federal races, with 26 elected (65%), including nine to city councils and seven to school boards. Overall in calendar 2023, in 80 non-state, non-Federal races Greens were elected 41 times (51.3%). READ THE FULL STORY HERE
PA Green News
Edited by Chris Robinson
Green Party Calls for PA 2024 Presidential Primary
On November 12, thirty elected delegates and friends from seven PA counties voted to hold a Green Party of PA Presidential Primary in February 2024. The plan which was proposed by the GPPA GreenWave Team included the following dates:
January 1, 2024, Last date for voters to register Green in order to vote in the Green Party of PA Presidential Primary
February 1, 2024, Last date for presidential candidates to be approved for the Green Party of PA Presidential Primary ballot
February 1, 2024, Deadline for Green Party voters to apply for an absentee ballot
February 13, 2024, Green Party of PA mails absentee ballots to voters
February 15, 2024, Green Party of PA Presidential Primary virtual voting begins
February 29, 2024, End of virtual voting and last date for postmark on absentee ballots
March 4, 2024, Final date for receipt of Green Party of PA Presidential Primary absentee ballots
March 13, 2024, Report results of Green Party of PA Presidential Primary to candidates and the media
This will be the first time for the Green Party of PA to use virtual voting in a Presidential Primary. During previous presidential elections, GPPA relied upon county caucuses (like Iowa) to choose its presidential candidate.
Green Party To Add Delegates to PA State Committee
At the State Committee meeting of the Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA) on November 12, the 30 elected delegates voted by consensus to change the Rules (think “by-laws”) of the party to include more elected delegates from unorganized parts of the Commonwealth. Before this vote, around thirty percent of the GPPA’s 10,000 registered members lived in unorganized counties.
GPPA Co-Chair Jeremy Griffin (Delaware), explained, “The main reason this amendment had to be passed was to insure that we give a voice to unorganized Greens, no matter in which county they live. The amendment was discussed and approved by the Steering Committee, and I believe it will strengthen the GPPA’s democratic process at the state level.” READ THE FULL STORY HERE
National Green News
Edited by David Ochmanowicz Jr.
2024 Green Party U.S. Congressional & Senate Candidates Forum 1/5/24
One of the first Green Party candidate forums of 2024. This free virtual event will feature Congressional candidates from across the nation who will be speaking to Green Party members and future candidates about the need for more people like you to be on the ballot. Prepare to be inspired to learn more and to race for office in your community. They share why they decided to run for office, what issues they care about, and how people can support their campaigns to break the system. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Ending the Gaza War: Can a Just Peace Arise?
On November 29, 1947 the United Nations adopted Resolution 181 that would divide Great Britain's former Palestinian mandate into Jewish and Arab states. In the intervening years, Israel has been engaged in a series of wars with adjacent Arab states and displaced Palestinians. On the 76th anniversary, the Green Party Peace Action Committee presented a webinar on the latest outbreak of fighting in the Mideast, the war in Gaza. The focus was on exploring prospects for a permanent end to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. WATCH THE WEBINAR HERE
Arizona Green Party Submits 63,000 Signatures on Party Petition
The Arizona Green Party has submitted its petition for party status. It had approximately 63,000 signatures. The requirement is 34,116. Assuming the petition is valid, the party will be on the Arizona ballot for 2024 and 2026. In Arizona, when a party submits a petition, it gets the next two elections. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Green Party Calls for a Green New Deal at COP28, A Rapid Halt to Fossil Fuels
The Green Party of the United States called upon the Biden administration to support a rapid phaseout of fossil fuels and a ten-year transition to 100% renewable energy with zero greenhouse gas emissions, at the COP28 climate summit . . . . The Green Party, which began calling for a robust ecosocialist Green New Deal in 2010, insists that the U.S. support a just transition for all, and recognizes the disproportionate impact of climate change on vulnerable communities, which requires making climate reparations to the Global South to pay for the climate damage mainly caused by polluters from the industrial north.
We need a comprehensive economic bill of rights. Our government must invest in training workers for green jobs while guaranteeing equitable access to the benefits of a sustainable, circular economy. COP27 incorporated 'loss and damages' for the first time. COP28 must deliver on guaranteed climate financing. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Global Green News
Edited by Hal Brown
Belgian Greens File Complaint Against SHEIN
“Given the model of [SHEIN] the Chinese brand, its activities have dangerous and worrying environmental consequences for the entire population,” declares Ecolo MP Olivier Bierin. “Whether it is the greenhouse gas emissions inherent in the manufacturing process of clothing, transport or even waste management, we consider that the OECD must take up the problem,” he continues. While the textile industry is already responsible for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, SHEIN produces nearly 8,000 new items per day. “This is nonsense which encourages unreasonable over-consumption, and to wear on your skin poor quality products, dangerous for health”. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Green Party of Malta Denounces the Low Budget for Education Sector
In the Republic of Malta . . . the Green Party has denounced the low budget allocated to the education sector in next year’s budget, calling the government miserly towards educators and students. In a speech to the media in front of the Education Ministry, [Green Party] President Sandra Gauci showed that instead of investing in the university . . . the government chose to reward waste with subsidies which she described as “random” and which do not reduce dependence on imported energy and pollution.
President Maduro Welcomes Creation of a Green Party in Venezuela
The Venezuelan head of state was pleased to see that one of the objectives of this party is “to build a society of equals and an ecologically balanced environment” and assured that an organization with these guidelines was necessary. “Venezuela needed a political force that would defend the cause of ecology, of the fight against climate change, against the climate emergency,” he said. READ FULL STORY HERE
GPPA Meeting Dates for 2024
All State Web Conferences will begin promptly at noon.
Sunday, January 7, via Zoom – Elect GPPA Steering Committee
Register here, https://www.gpofpa.org/20240107_state_committee
Sunday, March 10, via Zoom
Sunday, June 9, via Zoom
Sunday, September 22, in person (location TBA)
Sunday, November 10, via Zoom
GPPA Communications Team
Issue Credits
Editors: Hal Brown, Patrick O. McNally, David Ochmanowicz, Jr. and Chris Robinson
Contributors: Jeremy Griffin, Chris Robinson and Tim Runkle
Layout: Hal Brown, Sherri Miller, and David Ochmanowicz Jr.
Graphic Arts: Kevin Richardson
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