Tony Dastra Campaign for
Governor of Pennsylvania

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, May 8, 2026

MEDIA CONTACT 

Chris Robinson, 267-977-0570 and
[email protected] 

Green Party Candidates will Clean Up Pennsylvania

Faced with long-term corruption in Pennsylvania, Green Party candidate for Governor Tony Dastra said, “I hope that Voters who are fed up with corruption in Harrisburg will turn to the Green Party this year for two candidates who want to ban bribery. Voters already know the problem – Pennsylvania is open for business, and big business has costs to pass off onto taxpayers.

“The fossil fuel industry is polluting our air, soil and water because politicians from the two corporate parties easily bend over,” said Dastra. “Our governor promised the people of Dimock, that they would get a fresh water line to replace the well water polluted by the fracking companies. They are still waiting for that fresh water line.

“Now we have a new cash grab called artificial intelligence, which is offering donations in return for the right to pollute our land and drinking water while devouring energy, Dastra continued. "Just look at our Governor, who is running for re-election. I read in the Philadelphia Inquirer that his campaign has already raised almost $17 million. Half of that was donated by '240 CEOs, founders, business owners, and other top executives.' Many of them do not live in our Commonwealth. So, they vote with their wallets.”

Chair Craig Bolton of the Green Party of Philadelphia agrees with Dastra. Bolton, who is running to be Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor, joined in, “My general thoughts on corruption in Harrisburg are that it ultimately stems from the two-party system. I believe there are organized efforts by Republicans to intentionally and vindictively withhold state resources from Philadelphia -- particularly crucial education and transit system funds. As usual, Democrats in both Harrisburg and Philadelphia make no true efforts to fix this. Instead, they present strategic half-measures which allow them to play off of the Republicans electorally, while they avoid addressing the root causes of corrupt cronyism in our Commonwealth’s partisan politics.” 

Dastra has solutions: “It doesn’t have to be this way. Right now, 14 states have public campaign financing of elections. The impact of public campaign financing can have two results. The first is to amplify the voices of small donors, working people – those that can’t write big checks. The second is to ensure that we will have more candidates running for office who may not have felt like they had a shot to do so without selling their soul.

“Another reform, which I like, is Democracy Dollars,” continued Dastra, “sometimes called Democracy Vouchers -- under which each voter receives four $25 vouchers to donate to candidates of their choice. When this program was introduced in Seattle in 2017, it increased the amount of small donations from 25 percent of contributions to 66 percent. After Democracy Vouchers were introduced, campaign donors have become closer to the city’s population in age, race, gender and income."

Bolton also believes that a new administration led by a Green Party executive could bring change to Harrisburg. He said, “Other reforms which would take the corruption out of Pennsylvania politics are:

Establish a Gift Ban,

Prohibit Personal Use of Campaign Funds,

Prohibit PA Corporations from Donating to Campaigns, and 

Prohibit Foreign Spending on Our Elections.” 

Tony Dastra and Craig Bolton are currently gathering voters' signatures on their nomination papers. Please contact the Dastra-Bolton Campaign to help clean up Pennsylvania politics.

Dastra-Bolton Campaign Contact Information

Website, https://www.dastraforpa.org/         
Email,  [email protected]
Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/dastraforpa/
Facebook, www.facebook.com/DastraforPA 

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Green Party of Pennsylvania

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, December 11, 2025

MEDIA CONTACT 

Chris Robinson, Communication Team Co-Leader

267-977-0570 and [email protected]

Green Party of PA Endorses Declaration of Democracy

Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA) Co-chair Timothy Runkle (Lancaster) announced, “On December 5, the GPPA Steering Committee has endorsed the Declaration of Democracy statement from March On Harrisburg (MOH). GPPA Co-chair Theron Gilliland (Allegheny), who is also active with March on Harrisburg, submitted the proposal.”

“March On Harrisburg is a state-level, anti-corruption group which GPPA already supports and with which the Green Party has close ties and membership overlap,” continued Runkle. “MOH focuses on a legislative gift ban and ranked choice voting and is affiliated with Pennsylvania Action on Climate and Pennsylvania Poor People's Campaign. Furthermore ‘Democracy’ is one of the Four Pillars of the Green Party.”

Focusing on corruption within the PA General Assembly, the Declaration of Democracy says, “When it is legal to use money to buy political power and shape our society, we all pay the price. Our Legislature cannot serve both money and people. You cannot have ‘one person one vote’ and ‘one lobbyists dollar one vote’ at the same time. Every special interest has an army of PACs, and Super PACs to make sure that their voice is absolutely heard and the needs of working people are not. There are countless ways that money gets into politics. Countless ways that private, profit-driven interests are able to buy influence at the expense of the working class, our families, and our communities. While we lobby with reason, emotion, and people power, corporate lobbyists are armed with bribes and misinformation.”

The ten solutions proposed by the Declaration of Democracy are quite reasonable, “We demand a gift ban, campaign contribution limits, public campaign financing, bans on Super PACs, a ban on side jobs, and the closing of the revolving door. We demand an end to gerrymandering, open primaries, and ranked-choice voting, and we demand House and Senate rules that empower all legislators.”

Chair Jay Ting Walker, Green Party of Allegheny County, said, “It's disappointing but not surprising that so many no brainer, good government reforms have not come to a vote yet in Harrisburg. Hopefully the growing protests will finally get the attention of a corrupt capitol.”

GPPA Steering Committee Member Colleen Schmotzer (Allegheny) said, "The Declaration of Democracy resonates deeply with the core principles of a government that serves its people -- mainly Green Party values. It calls for an end to the undue influence of wealthy interests and a return to a system where lawmakers are accountable to their constituents, not to the highest bidder. By advocating for transparency, ethical governance, and the empowerment of the citizenry, this declaration seeks to fortify the very foundations of democracy. It's a call to action, urging us to recognize the power we hold to shape our society and to actively participate in the creation of a more just and equitable Pennsylvania. The Green Party is very happy to support this."

The Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA), https://www.gpofpa.org, is an independent political party which stands in opposition to the two corporate parties. GPPA candidates promote public policy based on the Green Party’s Four Pillars: grassroots democracy, nonviolence, ecological wisdom, and social justice/equal opportunity. For further information about GPPA, please email [email protected]. Please follow GPPA on social media: Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/gpofpa/; Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/pagreenparty/; and X, https://x.com/GreenPartyofPA

For more information:
Declaration of Democracy, March on Harrisburg, November 17, 2025, https://www.mohpa.org/blog/declaration-of-democracy

“Green Party Promotes Strong Democracy in PA,” Green Party of Pennsylvania News Release, February 20, 2019, https://www.gp.org/green_party_promotes_strong_democracy

Four Pillars, Green Party of the U.S.,
https://www.gp.org/the_four_pillars

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