The United States takes pride in calling itself a “democratic” republic, with “free and fair elections.” Yet Illinois election laws are fixed to give a huge advantage to the candidates of just two political parties, stifling all other competition. Such a system cannot justly be described as “democratic” or “free and fair.” That is why the Illinois Green Party urges Illinoisans to speak up and take a strong stand in support of Senate Bill 141.

Illinois has one of the most repressive, restrictive and grossly unfair ballot access laws in the United States. For example:

• When a Democratic or Republican…

TONIGHT: Facebook Live Town Hall at 8:00 p.m. (Thursday, March 14)

Join us tonight at 8:00 p.m. EDT to discuss the first draft of our 2019 Platform in a Facebook Livestream Town Hall.

If you haven’t been participating in our online forum to discuss platform ideas then this is your first look at how things are coming along.

But there’s still plenty of time to submit your ideas for the platform! The next deadline for feedback and revisions is March 30, and then we will circulate and take feedback on a 2nd draft in April before finally ratifying the platform at our May 11 statewide meeting.

Check out the complete platform…

Augusta, ME — The Green Independent Party has taken a position opposing a Central Maine Power (CMP) proposal to create a 145-mile transmission line corridor that would deliver electricity from Canada to Massachusetts.

Central Maine Power, which would distribute power provided by Hydro-Québec, has failed to provide evidence that the proposal would reduce climate-changing emissions and has admitted that it does not know what the sources of energy will be.

The Green Independent Party is an ecologically-focused political party that has been on Maine’s ballot for more than 20 years and initially formed in 1984.

In addition to redistributing electricity…

We just returned from nine days in Iran with a 28-person peace delegation organized by CODE PINK. It is clear that people in Iran want two things:

1. To be respected as an independent, sovereign nation
2. To have peace with the United States without threats of war or economic sanctions seeking to dominate them.

The path to those goals requires the United States to change its policies toward Iran as the US has a long history of interference in Iranian politics with disastrous results. The US must stop its belligerence and engage in honest, respectful dialogue with the government of Iran.

…

Edwin Starr, in his 1970 hit single asked “War, what is it good for?” His catchy answer was “absolutely nothing!”

On the face of it Mr. Starr’s point seems obvious. But if so why has the United States engaged in seemingly endless war in places like Vietnam, Panama, Grenada, Afghanistan and Iraq, since Mr. Starr’s song hit the charts? Why are policy makers in Washington D.C. fomenting for more war in Venezuela and Iran? Apparently, war is good for something as the U.S. continues engaging it.

Perhaps our policy makers, being graduates of Ivy League schools, know something of war’s…

Joint statement from the Baltimore County Green Party and the Maryland Green Party on Del. Lisanti

The Baltimore County chapter of the Green Party and the Maryland Green Party call for the resignation of Del. Mary Ann Lisanti following her use of racist language to describe Maryland residents.

It is simply unacceptable for a person who works on behalf of the citizens of Maryland to casually describe Marylanders with racist language the delegate used.

It is no coincidence that a person who would use such racist language would also put forth policy that would continue to disproportionately harm people of…

PA Governor Tom Wolf (Democrat) and PA Senator Mike Folmer (Republican) have announced proposals to reform Pennsylvania’s antiquated, expensive, and daunting election system. The Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA) reviewed these proposals and found that both include some excellent changes which would eliminate obstructions and make voting easier and more accessible. However, both proposals also have some concerning issues and are missing some key elements of a fair and inclusive system.

Jay Sweeney, auditor of Falls Township and GPPA delegate from Wyoming County, said, “The Wolf and Folmer proposals contain goals the Green Party can support, including making voting more…

New York — Members of the Green Party of New York (GPNY) came out in full force to demand immediate and comprehensive action to address the planetary emergency of climate change at New York State Senate hearings held the week of February 10, 2019. Greens called for the elimination of new fossil fuel infrastructure, particularly the building of new gas pipelines and gas-fired power plants, and moving to a carbon-neutral, 100% clean, renewable energy economy by 2030. They emphasized the need for a just transition for workers and frontline communities most affected by climate change.

The hearings were convened by…