My Perspective on Howie Hawkins’ recognition by the Presidential Campaign Support Committee.
Disclaimer: I am a member of the Green Party Presidential Campaign Support Committee, I represent the state of Maryland and have been on the committee since August. My opinion is mine alone. This is my position on the recognition of Howie Hawkins as a presidential candidate in light of the claim by several candidates that he is a member of the Socialist Party and thus ineligible for recognition by the Green Party.
Part 1: Context
This is the demand made in an open letter by five candidates who were at the time seeking the Green Party nomination for President
“ •Enforce the criteria for official recognition for all candidates equally. Rescind Howie Hawkins’ official recognition because Hawkins is violating the “Party Affiliation” recognition criterion (set out in the Rules & Procedures of the GPUS) by being a member of another party.”
This is the claim behind that demand
Furthermore, the PCSC is not applying the “official recognition” criteria equally or fully to all candidates. The Committee has granted official recognition to Howie Hawkins even though he’s not eligible for official recognition because he is a member of another political party. In an interview on New Jersey Revolution Radio in September, he revealed that has been a member Socialist Party USA since 1970. He announced that he is seeking the SPUSA Presidential nomination this election cycle as well as the GPUS nomination. This interview is viewable at https://www.facebook.com/NJRevRad/videos/426495957982238.
Part 2 :Relevant Rules and Laws
The Green Party Rule on Party Affiliation
https://gpus.org/rules-procedures/#10
10–1.2 Party Affiliation: Candidate is not a registrant or otherwise a party member of any state or national level political party in the individual’s primary state of residence except for a state party which has affiliated with GPUS, or a party forming for the intent of GPUS affiliation in a state where there is no GPUS affiliated state party.
The key part of this definition for the purposes of this discussion is “in the individual’s primary state of residence”. Because of this clause in the Green Party Rules and Procedures we must base our definition in New York Law.
New York Election Law-Definition of Party
According to section 1–104 of New York Election law-entitled “Definitions”
https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/ELN/1-104
Throughout the entire election law in New York, every time “Party” is referenced this is what it means. It is explicit in its connection to results in the gubernatorial election.
More Evidence for this definition:
A party is a political organization that ran a candidate in the last gubernatorial election who garnered at least 50,000 votes. There are presently eight parties in New York State as so defined:
Democratic
Republican
Conservative
Working Families
Green
Libertarian
Independence
SAM
New York Election Law-Definition of Independent Body
If the Socialist Party were to seek a ballot line in New York for the Presidential Election in 2020 they would be forced to do so as an “Independent Body”
https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/ELN/1-104
12. The term “independent body” means any organization or group of voters which nominates a candidate or candidates for office to be voted for at an election, and which is not a party as herein provided.
In order to become a party in the State of New York the Socialist Party would then need to use the independent body process in the next Gubernatorial Election, from Ballotpedia.
In New York, a political party is defined as any political organization whose candidate for governor at the last preceding election polled at least 50,000 votes. New York does not provide a process for political organizations to gain qualified status in advance of an election. Instead, political organizations seeking party status must run a candidate for governor via the independent nomination process (see this article for more information). The organization may denote its name on the nominating petition; the organization’s name will then appear alongside the candidate’s name on the ballot. The name selected must be rendered in English and cannot suggest similarity to an existing party or a political organization that has already filed. If at the general election the organization’s candidate for governor wins at least 50,000 votes, the organization will then be recognized by the state as a political party.
Federal Election Commission Committee
Richard Winger is being cited to say that Socialist Party has an FEC commitee and is recognized as party by the FEC https://ballot-access.org/2019/10/26/socialist-party-will-choose-presidential-nominee-late-on-saturday-october-26/
“ The Socialist Party is recognized as a national committee by the FEC. The FEC made that decision in December 1980. The FEC has no mechanism for removing any party’s national committee status. The Natural Law Party is still also recognized as a national committee.”
I don’t doubt Richard Winger is correct, but it is not relevant to the question at hand because the FEC recognition of the Socialist Party at the national level does not make Hawkins a member in his primary state Of residence.
Green Party Rule Regarding Ballot Lines
The one final relevant piece of rule or regulation is from the Green Party Rules and Regulations
10–1.3 Ballot Lines: Candidate has pledged in writing to the PCSC to appear on all offered statewide Green Party ballot lines.
Part 3 Conclusion
The Green Party rules require two things of candidates seeking their nomination that are relevant to this discussion
- That Hawkins be a member of the Green Party and the Green Party only in his primary state of residence-New York. Hawkins is a registrant of the Green Party of New York
- That Hawkins commit in writing to seek every Green Party ballot line he is offered.
Neither of these requirements are violated by his seeking and receiving the Socialist Party presidential nomination nor do they preclude him from claiming affiliation with the socialist “party.”
The question of affiliation in his primary state of residence is not a question of what he calls himself, or how the Socialist Party identifies its recurring donor program, it is a question of law in New York State. Any other interpretation is incredibly subjective and not useful in establishing policy for a national political party.
It could reasonably be argued that this what was intended by the phrase “or national level political party” in the Green Party Rule and Procedure, but if that was the goal of this Article, including “in the individual’s primary state of residence” directly following that renders that clause moot because New York does not use FEC designations to define Political Party.
In my reading of the relevant rules and laws Hawkins is in no way out of compliance with Green Party Rules and Regulations and thus should continue to be an officially recognized candidate.
None of this is offered
a)to support Hawkins pursuit of multiple party nominations
b)stand in for an official Presidential Campaign Support Committee statement on this matter
c)to comment on any of the other claims made by the 5 candidates.
It is offered
a)to provide my thinking on this question
b)to ground the conversation relevant rules, regulations, and laws.
c)to move conversation forward
