The Green Party is an extension of the citizen-based movements which so many of us are apart of. The Green party can serve as a means to enter these voices into the wider arena of electoral politics. We have a distinctive political ideology which is new, historically-placed and still being written. The Green Party is the fastest growing, worldwide movement seen in the second half of the 20^th Century. It is scientifically supportable, not just a romantic utopian vision, and is relevant to all classes, all ideologies, and all nations of the world. The Green Party calls for a restructuring of social, cultural, and political life, especially in the developed countries. It seeks to shift the debate onto those who would maintain the status quo, away from the defenders of Green principles, which challenge that there is no alternative, that if there is to be a future, it will have to be Green.
 

The Green Party is more than a political party. It is a belief system that envisions a future based on human equality, dignity and diversity. Despite minuscule differences, the main agenda of both the Democrats and Republicans has been self-promotion and self-preservation, continuation of a status-quo favoring the moneyed interests on whom they are dependent for funding.

The agenda of the Green Party is spelled out in its 10 key values. For the Greens, political office is not a career option and is only one of many ways to serve our communities. For Greens, long-term vision extends into the next generation, not the next election. Like the Iroquois, The Greens seek a society where the interests of the seventh generation are considered equal to the interests of the present. Greens are beyond the simplistic Left/Right dichotomy; we are up front.
 

What vote? We are very different from the Democrats. We are running against the two- party system. We are tired of the lesser of the two evils we have been forced to choose between for decades. "When you vote for the lesser of two evils, you are still voting for evil." We are attracting the 60% which does not vote: youth, and minorities. The Democratic Party has been failing for a long time, without our help. That is because a Democrat has become indistinguishable from a Republican. Greens offer a genuine alternative choice from the Republocrats. We enable people to vote their hopes, not their fears.
 

Since we are decentralized political party, the Green locals are free to analyze their races, chances, resources, and opposition. We take the local, bottom-up approach. State campaigns will be managed by a cooperative of locals. Electoral reform is a big issue for Greens for both the community and the state, because mainstream politics have become fundraising contests, and not fair determinations of voter choice. We support values, not financiers or personalities. We hope to recruit from active movement groups, assess the opportunities, and then run appropriate candidates.
 

We support campaign-finance reforms, proportional representation, equal media access for all candidates, full disclosure on "hit mail," a shortened campaign season, a single primary day, None of the Above ballot choice, eliminating alternate party restrictions, lifetime voter registration - or an easier registration process. We also ask for a weekend- election day, easier write-ins, or a national initiative process.
 

The Green party is the only truly global party with parties in 76 countries including Mexico, Sweden, England, New Zealand, Africa, Canada, Asia, Ireland, Taiwan and others. In the USA there are 72 Greens holding elected office today. On the Presidential level, in 1996 the Greens ran their first-ever ticket of Ralph Nader and Winona Laduke and despite appearing on only 21 state ballots, they came in 4^th place with over 700,000 votes, when only 1/7 voters knew he was running.

Four thousand eight hundred people in Texas wrote in the Green candidates on election day! The Nader/Laduke campaign spent only 30 cents per vote compared to Clinton’s $1.36, Dole’s $1.63, Perot’s $3.67, Libertarian’s $6.37.
 

Sure, doesn’t every political party? The other parties tend to have theirs behind closed doors, while we feel that opening to such conflict can actually be healthy. Disagreements allow us to tailor our projects to include dissenting opinions. In serious cases, we use mediation. Many locals teach conflict resolution.
 

Many people of color have registered Green. The Green movement grew out of the environmental movement, which has been traditionally white. Movements have to start somewhere. Some start with workers, some with women or youth. We are working with all of the above, as well as the environmental justice movements. We recognize that there will be no social justice until people of color gain genuine political power, and this is reflected in our selection of candidates. We are especially sensitive towards Native Americans, both for the reverence with which their culture regards the earth, and for the onslaught they have suffered in the name of business as usual.