Green Party becomes the first party to endorse the Standing For Voters pledge to defend election integrity

Green Party becomes the first party to endorse the Standing For Voters pledge to defend election integrity

Green national candidates McKinney and Clemente sign on, along with other Green candidates; Greens cite their leadership role in the 2004 Ohio and New Mexico recounts after evidence of vote theft

Greens condemn GOP efforts to disqualify legitimate voters in the 2008 election

WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A./October 30, 2008/3mnewswire.org/-- The Green Party of the United States has become the first political party to endorse the Election Integrity Pledge promoted by Standing For Voters (http://www.StandingForVoters.org), an internet-based group inviting candidates to pledge their commitment to fair elections.

Along with the Green Party, several Green Party candidates have pledged 'no early concessions' and actions challenging election outcomes if necessary: presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney and vice presidential candidate Rosa Clemente; US Congressional candidates Carol Brouillet (Calif.-14), Rebecca Dewitt (Ariz.-4), Harold Burbank (Conn.-5), and Mike Beilstein (Or.-4); and five candidates for state and local offices: Dan Kairis of Illinois, Richard Boyle of California, Rick Lass of New Mexico, Allan Hancock of Minnesota, and Charles A. Pillsbury of Connecticut.

"Led by David Cobb, our 2004 presidential candidate, Greens organized the response to the 2004 vote theft. John Kerry and most of his fellow Democrats did nothing after reports and evidence of GOP election manipulation and obstruction of African American and young voters surfaced. Meanwhile, Greens filed for the recounts in Ohio and New Mexico and raised most of the money for legal expenses. It's our special obligation and privilege to be the first party to sign on to the Standing For Voters pledge," said Holly Hart, secretary of the Green Party of the United States.

For more on Green leadership in the Ohio and New Mexico recounts, visit IWantMyVote.com (http://www.iwantmyvote.com).

In signing the pledge, Greens sharply condemned recent tactics that have been used to obstruct and discourage voters, especially African Americans in certain states, from voting. Such tactics include letters to voters falsely claiming that they've been declared ineligible to vote, foreclosure lists denying right to vote because a voter's address is "no longer valid," and vicious attacks on voter registration efforts.

"The drastic efforts to disqualify legitimate voters suggests that we'll see a repeat of Republican conspiracies to steal the national election. Will Democrats fight this time, or will they roll over again and leave it to the Green Party?" asked Sanda Everette, co-chair of the Green Party.

The documentary 'American Blackout' covers Cynthia McKinney's role in the struggle for election integrity (http://www.americanblackout.com). A recent essay by Ms. McKinney also addresses the breakdown in fair elections (OpEdNews.com, Oct. 7, http://www.opednews.com/articles/-Where-s-Kenny-Rogers-When-by-Cynthia-McKinney-081007-748.html).

The Green Party advocates various systematic reforms to ensure fair, accurate, and truly democratic elections, including public financing of elections, free time on public airwaves for all candidates, repeal of ballot access laws restricting alternative-party and independent candidates, paper verification and open-source software for computer voting systems, instant runoff voting, and proportional representation.

According to the Standing For Voters pledge, signers promise to challenge election results "if the combination of election conditions, incident reports, and announced election results calls into question the reliability of the official vote count." Should another candidate be declared the winner in a race, signers vow to "wait until all valid votes are counted and all serious challenges resolved before conceding defeat."

"We'd like to see all of the nation's political parties endorse Standing For Voters, as the Green Party has done nationally," said Emily Levy, Standing For Voters Project Coordinator. "As participants in what's commonly known as 'our democratic process,' all parties should commit to fair elections. We welcome endorsements from local, state, and national party organizations, as well as other groups that care about democracy."


MORE INFORMATION

Green Party of the United States http://www.gp.org
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193

Green candidate database for 2008 and other campaign information: http://www.gp.org/elections.shtml

Green Party News Center http://www.gp.org/newscenter.shtml

Green Party Speakers Bureau http://www.gp.org/speakers

Green Party ballot access page http://www.gp.org/2008-elections

2008 Green candidates to watch http://www.gp.org/2008-elections/candidate-news.php

Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente 'Power to the People' Campaign for the White House
http://votetruth08.com
http://www.runcynthiarun.org

Cynthia McKinney on video
http://www.youtube.com/user/RunCynthiaRun
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=RunCynthiaRun

BreakTheMatrix.com interview, Oct. 19: http://www.breakthematrix.com/node/28047

Democracy Now! interview, Oct. 16: http://www.democracynow.org/2008/10/16/breaking_the_sound_barrier_third

Music video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gx1NPlQjkqo

Rosa Clemente on video
Interview: Current TV/Rock the Vote http://current.com/items/89335393_the_organizer_and_green_party_vp_candidate_talks_about_her_inspirations

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