The Ohio Green Party hosted an informal meeting at Relax, It’s Just Coffee on Saturday night. In this next election cycle they will be the only identified minority party on the ballot, a status made possible by a court ruling in 2010.
This status is tenuous however, as the party must garner two percent of the vote to maintain that minor party status. Some consider that a tall order for such a new party, but the “Greens,” as they refer to themselves, believe they are poised to affect meaningful change as a third party.
A 2013 Gallup Poll found that 60 percent of Americans believe there is need for a third party, and the Ohio Green Party hopes to be that option in the Buckeye State. Their stated goal “is to be the electoral wing of the nationwide movements against war and corporate power.”
Shawn Nestor, campaign manager for the gubernatorial race, is optimistic. “We’re a third party, and it’s an uphill battle, but it’s not impossible. We have Greens getting elected all over the country, particularly in local offices. Here in Ohio we have Brian Cummins on Cleveland City Council and he’s done a wonderful job.”
Candidate for Lt. Governor Bob Fitrakis reminded the audience that third parties have an important place in American history. Third parties brought us the eight-hour work day, voting rights for women, and the abolition of slavery. Even the Grand Old Party, the Republican Party, began as a third party.
The Ohio Greens hope that their platform will do two things: Offer an alternative to the status quo, and serve as a catalyst for change.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but about 70 percent of registered voters in Ohio have no party affiliation whatsoever,” said Nestor. He believes that this is evidence that the average Ohio voter doesn’t see their values reflected in the two major parties.
Anita Rios, candidate for Governor, Bob Fitrakis, candidate for Lt. Governor and Bob Hart, candidate for the 12th US Congressional District, all spoke Saturday evening. All of the candidates made it clear that the Green Party is different, and they were forthright about those differences, even on controversial stands that the party takes on issues such as capital punishment and abortion.
The party’s platform is built on ten key values: grassroots democracy, social justice and equal opportunity, ecological wisdom, nonviolence, decentralization, community-based economics and economic justice, feminism and gender equality, respect for diversity, personal and global responsibility, and future focus and sustainability.
“The corporate wing of both the Democratic and Republican parties are in control of those parties’ policies,” said Hart. Although he contends that there are some individuals within those parties who vote their conscience, their parties no longer do so.
Hart argues that this distinction is why he is a member of the Green Party. “It’s a party that does not accept corporate PAC [political action committee] money, or lobbyist money. It does not believe in the pay to play system. It does not believe money is speech. It does not believe corporations are people,” said Hart.
He then pointed to the impact of gerrymandering, a practice he argues is central to the strategy of both parties. “We have 10 percent approval rating of congress, but a 90 percent re-election rate, and the question is, ‘How does this happen?’”
Hart continued, “The Republican and Democratic parties at the national and state level have gerrymandered districts so that 80 percent of congressional districts are now considered to be non-competitive.”
Fitrakis gave an impassioned speech about the critical role the Green Party hopes to play with regard to social and political change. He pointed to concerns about the militarization of police, the growing prison population, and increasing government surveillance of private citizens, as issues his party won’t shy away from.
Rios spoke candidly as she shared details of her life. “I’m the most unlikely candidate for governor,” she said.
Rios, a Toledo native, was was born in poverty in what she describes as “The American Third World.” She spent her first seven years in a three-room shack without plumbing or electricity; her first language was Spanish. After her father secured a factory job her family ascended to middle class.
She isn’t afraid to speak boldly about hot-button issues. “If elected I would put an end to the death penalty. Not only would I commute sentences, but I’d destroy the systems that make it possible,” said Rios.
Also outspoken about abortion rights, Rios is currently unemployed because the abortion clinic where she worked as a counselor, was recently closed as a result of new regulations in Ohio. Even more personal is her own experience with abortion, “I had an abortion before Row vs. Wade. I had to go to another state to do so.” Rios continued, “I am a mom and I feel that being a mother defines me, but choosing when and how to become one is also important.”
Rios’ economic policy is also a departure from the typical party rhetoric. She believes that the solution to our economic crisis is entrepreneurship. “We need jobs and it will take a genuine community effort to create them. We need to look at what we have, our assets, and start there.”
“Corporations are not the answer. If you have worker-owned businesses, society has more to work with, there’s more opportunity,” said Rios.
The Ohio Green Party will continue to hold public forums throughout the state, for more information visit their website.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but about 70 percent of registered voters in Ohio have no party affiliation whatsoever,” said Shawn Nestor.
