1,792 votes cast, Jill Stein received 1,223 of them, or 68%. Roseanne Barr, who had just entered the race in the last week, picked up 526 votes, or 29%. There were 35 votes for Kent Mesplay, and 8 votes for Harley Mikkelson

GPW reports that Roseanne Barr is very active on Twitter, and had tweeted a challenge to Bill Maher, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert to have both herself and Jill Stein on their programs.

They also report that Jill Stein is actively fundraising, has hired at least 3 staff onto the campaign, and has campaigned so far in California, Colorado, Delaware, DC, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Virginia, Wisconsin, and other additional states as well.

Jill Stein issued a short statement saying “It is great to have Roseanne Barr on the Green Party team. Let’s bring down the house!” Barr has similarly already made positive statements regarding Stein’s candidacy.

An email from the Stein campaign says that

Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party presidential candidate, begins a three day tour of Indiana and Ohio today with a visit to the Evergreen Cooperatives in Cleveland, accompanied by Cleveland City Councilman and Green Party elected official Brian Cummins and County Executive candidate David Ellison.

Saturday at 11:30am, Dr. Stein addresses the Green Party of Ohio Presidential Nominating Convention in Columbus.

This Sunday, as part of Indianapolis’ Occupy the Super Bowl protests, she rallies with supporters at the state capitol against anti-labor legislation such as “Right to Work for Less.”

The full itinerary of public events is viewable here: http://www.jillstein.org/events

Dr. Stein is especially interested in the Evergreen Cooperatives for providing one successful model, among many, for how economic democracy can provide employment and prosperity for stressed communities. In her recent People’s State of the Union address, Dr. Stein called for a Green New Deal providing for full employment and an immediate transition to a sustainable, more democratic economy. The Evergreen Cooperatives “are pioneering innovative models of job creation, wealth building, and sustainability,” and are, “employee-owned, for-profit companies are based locally and hire locally.”

On Occupy Super Bowl Sunday, at noon, Dr. Stein will rally with supporters and other labor movement advocates at the Indiana statehouse in Indianapolis. Dr. Stein is not only strongly opposed to so-called Right-to-Work legislation (RTW), her Green New Deal includes a “program of immediate creation of 25 million, publicly useful, sustainable, well-paying jobs,” according to a prepared statement. Stein will be joined at the rally by lifelong labor organizer Anthony Prince, and student activist Erika Wolf, both newly hired members of the Jill Stein for President campaign staff.

The Green Party has put out a press release welcoming Stein and Barr to the presidential race:

The Green Party of the United States welcomes two candidates into the race for the 2012 Green presidential nomination, Jill Stein and Roseanne Barr. Ms. Barr and Dr. Stein submitted paperwork to meet the Green Party’s requirements as of the evening of the Feb. 1 deadline.

“We are thrilled to have two strong women running for President as Greens,” said Darryl Moch, national co-chair of the Green Party. “We look forward to a race based on Green ideas and values, and to showing the Democrats and Republicans how to run without the corrupting influence of fat corporate campaign checks and corporate-funded attack ads.”

“Anyone hopeful about the Occupy Wall Street’s challenge to the status quo or disappointed by the Obama Administration’s broken promises of change now has a pair of candidates to watch. Anyone bored or irritated with the Mitt Versus Newt Show by now will be relieved by the breath of fresh air — maybe a Green gale force of righteousness — that’s about to come,” said Tamar Yager, also a national co-chair of the Green Party.

For more information about the candidates, visit the following sites:

Jill Stein: http://www.jillstein.org

Roseanne Barr: http://www.roseanneforpresident.com

2012 Press Information for Green Candidates http://www.gp.org/candidates/index.php

The nominee will be chosen at the Green Party’s national convention, July 12-15, in Baltimore, Maryland (http://www.gpconvention2012.com)

State Green Parties in California, Arizona, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, and possibly Ohio are participating in primary elections. Other state Green Parties will choose the nominee they support and apportion delegates during statewide Green conventions. The Green Party currently has ballot access in 17 states. Greens expect to have the presidential nominee and other candidates on the ballot in at least 46 states and the District of Columbia on Election Day 2012.

Past Green Party convention sites and nominees:

2000: Denver, Colorado; Ralph Nader

2004: Milwaukee, Wisconsin; David Cobb

2008: Chicago, Illinois; Cynthia McKinney

“We consider it important to have strong women candidates at a time when women’s reproductive rights are under assult, from the Obama Administration’s decision on the morning-after pill to the Komen Foundation’s withdrawal of funding for breast cancer screening from Planned Parenthood. We’re proud that our presidential nominee in 2008 was a woman,” said Carl Romanelli, Pennsylvania Green and member of the Green Party’s International Committee.

132 Greens hold public office in the United States, including five mayors. The largest city with a Green mayor is Richmond, California, with Mayor Gayle McLaughlin. The Green Party and its candidates accept no money from corporate PACs.

Many Green candidates are promoting the “Green New Deal” in their campaigns (http://www.greenpartywatch.org/2010/08/11/62-green-candidates-endorse-green-new-deal). Greens have been active participants in the Occupy Movement; both Ms. Barr and Dr. Stein have appeared and spoken publicly at Occupy rallies.

Ballot Access News reports that the Associated Press has this story about Roseanne Barr’s announcement that she is seeking the Green Party presidential nomination; here is a Los Angeles Times story about Barr’s candidacy.

Kent Mesplay was featured in the Bloomington Alternative (H/T Green Party Watch).

This article at Green Party Watch has biographical information about four candidates (Stein, Barr, Mesplay and Mikkelson).

Green Party Watch also reports that Cindy Sheehan wrote

In the last election, I supported the Green Party candidate, Cynthia McKinney and her running mate, Rosa Clemente. Unfortunately, the Party is not entirely functional (which party is?), even if many of us do support its 10 Key Principles.
I have also been impressed by the other woman seeking the nomination, Jill Stein–she is bright, articulate, well-informed, truly progressive and dedicated to public service–but if push came to shove, I would support Roseanne.

Barr was a supporter of Sheehan in her race for Congress.

“We’re hoping to pack the house,” Jasikoff said Thursday. “This could be one of the biggest political events in history for Wilkes-Barre.”

He said Wilkes-Barre was selected during the party’s November meeting in Selinsgrove.

Carla Howell, executive director of the Libertarian National Party in Washington, D.C., confirmed the convention site and said part of the agenda will feature selection of candidates to run in all state congressional districts.

A kick-off meet-and-greet for Gary Johnson, former two-term governor of New Mexico, and other guests will be held at the Kirby Center, ending with a Friday Night at the Oldies disco party open to the general public.

Former Libertarian Party presidential candidate Michael Badnarik is also going to give a presentation on the Constitution to the convention delegates.

The City Committee of the Green Party of Philadelphia (GPOP, http://www.gpop.org) applauds Seth Williams’ decision on December 7 to end the District Attorney office’s long fight to impose the death sentence in the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. This is a huge victory for justice, the result of many years of hard work by many people committed to the cause of justice.

The Green Party considers the lifting of any death sentence as a step forward. “Mistakes happen,” says Carol McLean, Green Party Membership Secretary. “It is not uncommon to hear of people who were executed under the death penalty but later found to be innocent of the crime they purportedly committed.”

Vivek Ananthan, chair of the Green Party’s City Committee, said, “Internationally, the Green Parties of the world are against the death penalty in principle. There are no civilized countries in the world which have a death penalty.”

Williams’ decision is an admission that the case against Abu-Jamal is too deeply flawed to justify continuing pursuit of the death penalty. He should now take the next logical step and call for a fair trial for Abu-Jamal. Williams’ decision is only a baby step forward in a case that leaves too many unanswered questions.

In his 2008 book, “The Framing of Mumia Abu-Jamal,” J. Patrick O’Connor addresses many of these questions.

The testimony of three key witnesses contradicted their own earlier statements, and this information was improperly concealed from the defense. All three of these witnesses had something to gain from perjuring themselves, and this information was improperly concealed from the defense.

Testimony that might have exonerated Abu-Jamal was improperly concealed from the defense.

Why was Billy Cook’s passenger, Kenneth Freeman, never investigated as the possible trigger-man? Why was Freeman found dead, naked, gagged and handcuffed on the night in 1985 when the Philadelphia police firebombed the MOVE home? Why was the cause of his death officially reported as a heart attack? Why was there no police investigation into his death?

Investigators never investigated inconsistencies in Cynthia White’s testimony. Was her death arranged to conceal evidence that might have helped Abu-Jamal?

Amnesty International reported in 2000 and reaffirmed this month that Abu-Jamal’s “original trial was manifestly unfair and failed to meet international fair trial standards.” In fact, Abu-Jamal has never had a real opportunity to defend himself in court.

Why did the Pennsylvania Supreme Court fail to apply the Lawrence Baker precedent in Mumia’s case, and then carve out the so-called “Mumia Exception” in later reinstating that precedent?

Improper jury-selection practices were standard procedure at the time of Abu-Jamal’s trial. Why has U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder ignored the call for a civil-rights investigation into these improper procedures?

The people of Pennsylvania are entitled to answers to these and many other questions before we can end the long struggle for justice in Mumia’s case.

“I used to take my daughter to demonstrations to save the life of Mumia Abu-Jamal,” said Chris Robinson, member of the GPOP City Committee. “Soon, I will be taking my granddaughters to demonstrations to win an amnesty for Mumia Abu-Jamal.”

By Wayne Allyn Root, Former Libertarian Vice Presidential Nominee
As I write this commentary, Joe Paterno has been fired as Penn State football coach — effective immediately. Thousands of Penn State college students are in the streets, angry, sad, disillusioned, emotionally wrecked, overturning cars, and chanting Joe Paterno’s name. The riot police are in place to prevent the situation from getting out of hand. Those aren’t hoodlums with no hope and no future. They are educated, middle class, salt-of-the-earth Pennsylvania college kids attending a well-respected university. What is wrong with this picture? What does it say about America?

Let’s start with the obvious. Why aren’t those educated college kids out protesting on behalf of the little boys who were allegedly sexually assaulted by a longtime Penn State assistant coach? Has America so lost its compass? These kids are in love with a coach because…he’s a celebrity. Because he wins football games. Because he wins football games all else is forgiven. We are lucky this isn’t Kim Kardashian or Paris Hilton involved in child rape. We’d almost certainly witness mobs burn Los Angeles to the ground to show their support for their favorite celeb-turned-child-rapist. A sad commentary on all that is wrong with America.

Then there’s the actual conduct of Coach Joe Paterno. Here is a good moral man who has spent a lifetime molding the lives of young men at Penn State. Yet back in 2002 he heard from a graduate assistant that his longtime assistant coach was having sex in the shower with a 10 year old boy. Paterno reported the incident to his superiors, then never mentioned it again. How strange is that? He never thought to protect the 10-year old boy? He obviously never cared that the boy’s life (or certainly mental state) might be in danger. He obviously never thought to find out who the boy was and talk to him. He ever even considered that stopping this sexual deviant might possibly save other boys. He never thought to confront his friend of 30 years and ask him what happened. He never bothered to follow up with his superiors to ask about the young boys. Obviously he was busy with football.

How could this happen in my America? Is winning football games now more important than a 10-year old boy’s safety? Protecting a respected institution is obviously more important than stopping a child rapist. Bureaucracy and loyalty obviously dull the senses of important people. Educated responsible administrators with 6-figure and 7-figure salaries made the same decision to cover-up a heinous crime as priests and bishops and cardinals for the Catholic Church. In each case, none of these grown men stopped to consider “what if that was my little boy in the shower with that 60-year-old pervert?” The decision was made by respected people in authority at both respected institutions that the reputation of their employer was worth more than a little boy’s innocence. No one stopped to consider that these abused boys might someday commit suicide from the shame of what was done to them. It is hard to believe the lack of judgement. It is even harder to believe the world really is that selfish, thoughtless, and uncaring.

Keep in mind a key fact as we all judge Joe Paterno. The coach/pervert/rapist in question had an office in the Penn State football complex since his retirement in 1999. This incident took place in 2002. So Coach Paterno was told a man with an office in his building was using the football locker room to sexually assault little boys. And for the next 10 years he let the rapist/pervert keep his office in the building. For the next 10 years he let the man continue to conduct business in his office down the hall. He walked by his friend’s office and never thought to confront him about the incident. He walked by that office and never thought about the little boys. He walked by that office and never once thought to follow up with his superiors. All hard to even conceive.

And the students of Penn State think this is a role model? They want to waste their precious time protesting, chanting Paterno’s name, rioting, and destroying property in the name of a man who never thought to protect little boys being abused, molested and raped in his football facility. There is something very wrong, something very rancid in America in 2011.

By the way, would anyone be protesting, crying, chanting, or rioting in the name of a losing football coach? So this is clearly about winning. If you win enough football games, anything goes in America today. Even the cover-up of child rape is acceptable to those students at Penn State. These student protestors are educated, salt-of-the-earth, middle class Pennsylvania kids with the values of a prison chain gang. They learned their values and morals where exactly- MTV? Beavis & Butthead? The Kardashians? Watching Internet porn? It’s all frightening and a sign of the rapid decline of America.

Lastly, I’m betting none of those kids either knows of, or cares, about the important news of the day — Italy joining Greece on the verge of complete economic Armageddon. Or how about the impending collapse of the entire European Union due to perhaps the worst financial crisis in world history. All of which caused an almost 400 point drop on Wall Street. Some believe we now face the very real prospect of a Great Depression II, food lines, tent cities, and a crisis no college student alive today has ever imagined. Their future upon graduation from Penn State may have just taken a turn from dismal to bleak.

But hey…why should that matter. Those students have more important things to worry about: Penn State has a football game against Nebraska on Saturday. This is the bread-and-circus generation that expects government to take care of them from cradle to grave. Now we all understand why.

Wayne Allyn Root is a former Libertarian vice presidential nominee. He now serves as Chairman of the Libertarian National Congressional Committee. He is the best-selling author of “The Conscience of a Libertarian: Empowering the Citizen Revolution with God, Guns, Gold & Tax Cuts.” His web site:www.ROOTforAmerica.com

Neither Democrat State Rep. Jewell Williams (D-N. Phila.) nor Republican Joshua West may be aware, and most voters won’t know until the week before Nov. 3, Cheri Honkala, the feisty, nationally renowned crusader for the homeless, will be also seeking the office for Sheriff, on the Green Party ticket…

If she is elected, she believes it won’t be long after she will find herself escorted to prison by State Troopers wearing the badge of the County Sheriff. She states that is because she refuses to evict families from their homes due to foreclosure.

“It is understandable,” she says. “The laws, that proscribe what the Sheriff must do, go contrary to what is morally right for the poor, who are being thrown out of their homes, mostly with no fault of their own and without representation…”

“I expect to see thousands of small contributions from like-minded people throughout the country. We have seen scheduled for us, as of now, 56 house parties across the country. President Obama gathered in millions that way, and though I don’t have national press all the time, I have had enough that I now serve as a symbol for the thousands who find themselves in financial straits,” said Honkala.

She knows the pain, since her “own baby sister, a homeowner of 20 years and a full-time SEIU worker, lost her home. Her husband had been laid off for six months. They applied for all the relief programs, but the bank refused to modify the loan, doubling the mortgage, since she was forced to refinance.”

Honkala has been arrested over 200 times, all for civil disobedience, plus resisting arrest, assaulting police officers. “I was found guilty of obstructing the view of the Liberty Bell, by bringing in a half dozen homeless families and placing them between the bell and the public. I had to report daily for six months to a federal probation officer and I have a stay-away order from Independence Park.”

Commentary: Free and Equal elections
By Louis R. Jasikoff, Chair
Pennsylvania Libertarian Party
Contact: ljasikoff@gmail.com

The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania states in Article 1, Section 5 that “Elections shall be free and equal; and no power, civil or military, shall at any time interfere to prevent the free exercise of the right of suffrage.”

In the current election cycle Victor P. Stabile, Chairman of the Cumberland County Republican Committee is running for the office of Superior Court Judge. In 2008 he led the charge to preclude Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr and vicepresidential candidate Wayne Allyn Root from appearing on the Pennsylvania ballot even after the Libertarian Party collected over 60,000 signatures from registered voters in Pennsylvania. In the most recent election cycle Mr. Stabile praised the efforts of the Republican Party to remove all third party candidates from the statewide ballot in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Stabile wrote, “I am very pleased to report to you that challenges to the Green, Tea Party, and Libertarian candidates for state-wide office have been successful and these third party candidates will not be appearing on the November ballot.” He went on to say the following; “Voters do not get disenfranchised when fraud is uncovered. Unfortunately, this seems to be the process we are left with to deal with these situations until this type of impropriety is prosecuted.”

So let’s examine some of the alleged fraud, to which Mr. Stabile alluded. The Republican lawyers challenged the legitimacy of more than 2,000 signatures submitted by Betsy Summers. Her purported fraud and egregious error was in signing her petition ‘Betsy Summers,’ as she was to appear on the ballot, rather than ’Elisabeth Summers’ as she is listed on the voter registration rolls. I would hope this impropriety does not rise to the level of prosecution that Mr. Stabile speaks of in his comments. The attorneys challenged nomination papers in which a notary entered the county where the petitioner lived, rather than the county in which the signatures were gathered. Signatures of voters who signed their names where they should have printed it, and printed it where they were supposed to sign it were challenged. Dates that did not have the full year filled out were challenged. They flagged entries that matched voter registration cards but whose address disagreed with the State’s outdated SURE data base, and the list goes on and on. Anything to subvert free and fair elections. But the abuse did not stop there, as lawyers for the Republican Party then gave the Libertarian candidates a choice: drop out now or face fines personally of over $100,000 if the challenges proved successful. Yes, economic intimidation is now the preferred tactic used to keep third parties off the ballot and circumvent the Constitution of Pennsylvania, a tactic instituted and effectively utilized by the Democrat Party against Carl Romanelli.

I applaud Mr. Stabile’s fervor to promote the Republican Party as a party partisan; but being a party partisan should not be the qualification for a Superior Court Judge. We need judges who believe in the Commonwealth’s Constitution, and the rule of law and that above all else, our elections are to be fair and equal as prescribed by that Constitution. We need individuals who understand that we have men and women dying in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere around the world to insure free elections in those far-off lands, and yet right here in Pennsylvania politicians like Mr. Stabile look to quash that right by means of economic intimidation.

Mr. Stabile, you cloak yourself in the American flag and speak of protecting the electorate from fraud and impropriety while you choose to trample the very cornerstone of our democracy, that being free and equal elections. You, sir, in my opinion are not fit to be any judge no less a Superior Court Judge. I urge all groups and individuals who believe in the constitution and good government to send a clear message that despite one’s party affiliation, this behavior cannot and should not be tolerated any longer, and should certainly not be rewarded by a judgeship on Pennsylvania’s Superior Court.

Contact: Lou Jasikoff at ljasikoff@gmail.com or Betsy Summers at betsy.summers@midwestvet.net

Jasikoff takes State Chair, Summers tapped for NEPA Chair

Wilkes-Barre, PA— At the annual state convention on April 30th in Franklin, the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania elected a new slate of officers and adopted a new streamlined party platform. Local Libertarian Lou Jasikoff was elected to chair the state party. Betsy Summers is now chair for the local Northeast Pennsylvania (or NEPA) Libertarian group. Other elected officers were Kat Valleley, Eastern Vice-Chair; Jim Fryman, Western Vice-Chair; Vernon Etzel, Secretary; and Patti Fryman, Treasurer. Numerous other committees were filled along with the initial delegate list to the 2012 National Convention to be held next year in Las Vegas.

Jasikoff stated, “The Libertarian Party is poised to make serious inroads into Pennsylvania’s political process. More now than ever the message of a limited, constitutional government is on the voters’ minds. There is one and only one party that has relentlessly advocated getting government out of our wallets, out of our bedrooms, and out of foreign civil wars, and that is the Libertarian Party.”

“I plan to continue to expand on the successes we have made here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. We have unprecedented opportunities to see our ideas and party grow and will do whatever is necessary to promote and support our current candidates along with recruiting new ones. 2011 should be a very good year for the Libertarian Party in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” added Summers.

Jasikoff concluded, “One of our major initiatives will be to work with the Green, Constitution, and Independent Parties, as well as the Tea Party movement to educate our current elected representatives, the media, and the public at large, about the merits of the recently-introduced Voters’ Choice Act (VCA). It is imperative that we make our election process equal and fair as prescribed by our State Constitution. Chicanery, coercion, and economic intimidation are the current ‘modus operandi’ of party officials in the Democrat and Republican Parties and this can no longer be tolerated. The first step in restoring good and honest government starts with competition in politics, competition afforded all candidates that wish to compete in the arena of ideas.”

For more information or interviews, Please visit us at www.LPPA.org

For Immediate Release – May 19, 2011

www.lppa.org & www.gpofpa.org

Contact: Lou Jasikoff at ljasikoff@gmail.com or 570-677-2607
Carl Romanelli at cjromanellii@yahoo.com

Libertarian and Green Parties slam GOP Judicial Choice
“Stabile not deserving for Superior Court Judge”

Wilkes-Barre, PA—Pennsylvania Libertarian Party chair Lou Jasikoff declared the GOP’s choice for Superior Court Judge as nothing short of shameful.

["Vic"] Stabile led the charge to get Libertarians knocked off the ballot in 2008 and was recently quoted as being pleased by efforts to keep the Green and Libertarian Parties from appearing on the statewide 2010 ballot. “Mr. Stabile cloaks himself in the American flag while trampling on the very cornerstone of our democracy and should not be rewarded under any circumstance with a judgeship on Pennsylvania’s Superior Court,” insisted Jasikoff.

Green Party representative, Carl Romanelli stated, “The last defense of democracy and the Constitution is the judiciary. When it is corrupted or co-opted, it represents the most significant threat to the principles that once made America the grand protector of liberty. The shame and disgrace of Stabile should not only be rejected by victims of his partisan decisions, but also by his peers. The lack of meaningful review reflects as poorly on justice in Pennsylvania as does Stabile’s blatant obstruction of our rights. It is sad to think that the cradle of democracy, Pennsylvania, has now become its graveyard.”

Romanelli, the US Senate candidate in 2006 for the Pennsylvania Green Party, has long contended that his own removal from the ballot could not have been accomplished without the aid of partisan judges. Romanelli, a retired employee of the Luzerne County Courts, added; “Stabile’s comments, and record in ballot access cases, prove that both old parties are equally corrupted at the judicial level. The prevailing attitude is that anything goes in keeping other voices out of political debate and participation. Judges remain in violation of the Judicial Canons with such partisan behavior.”

Ken Krawchuk, the Libertarian candidate for Pennsylvania Governor in 1998 and 2002, was shocked to hear Victor Stabile was running for Superior Court Judge. “This is the same man who led the failed challenge to have the 2008 Libertarian presidential candidate removed from the statewide ballot. When someone is so ignorant of the law as to mount a frivolous challenge, or so inconsiderate of the voters of Pennsylvania to attempt to limit their choices on the ballot, it’s clear he lacks the knowledge, character and integrity to serve as a judge at any level.” Krawchuk, who is the Libertarian representative to the Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition (www.PaBallotAccess.org), added, “If Mr. Stabile had any sense of justice at all, he’d be working with us to reform Pennsylvania’s atrocious ballot access laws, which are among the worst in the nation, not exploiting them for political gain.”

“Pennsylvania is the only state in the nation where judges elected in partisan elections determine which candidates may appear on the ballot,” said Oliver Hall of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Competitive Democracy. “Now that Pennsylvania courts have begun to assess costs against candidates just for defending nomination petitions that they are required by law to submit, it is more important than ever that judges demonstrate a commitment to protecting candidate and voter rights to participate in free and equal elections – rather than the partisan interests of the judges’ campaign contributors.”

Wayne Allyn Root Vice-Presidential candidate on the 2008 Libertarian ticket concluded, “Ballot access is a fundamental right we enjoy as Americans. We can no longer allow or tolerate political operatives like Mr. Stabile to subvert that right; simply put it is Un-American. To purposely disregard laws on the books that allow for candidate substitution, or applaud efforts that totally ignore voter intent is unconscionable. Mr. Stabile is the face of everything wrong with Pennsylvania’s ballot access laws and his flawed and biased judgment should not find its way on Pennsylvania’s Superior Court.”

The Libertarian Party along with the Green Party and groups like the Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition, Free and Equal Organization and other liberty groups in Pennsylvania intend to make ballot access a major focus of conversation this election cycle. Only when all Americans can freely compete in the arena of ideas will we be able break the back of corruption that has so permeated our political system.

#####

From the Daily Record, on the subject of her campaign’s office:

In celebration of the office opening, the campaign has released the first in a series of tracks contributed by artists from all over the country inspired by Cheri Honkala’s bid for Sheriff of Philadelphia and her promise of “Keeping Families In Their Homes” by halting all evictions based in foreclosure. The song entitled “My Name is Cheri Honkala” can be found at the campaign’s BandCamp page, www.cheri4sheriff.bandcamp.com, and can be downloaded for a $1 donation.

A slideshow to accompany the song featuring photographs from famous documentary photographer Harvey Finkle can be found at the campaign’s YouTube channel located at YouTube.com/Cheri4Sheriff,, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbbFJdZSQc8.

Supporters of the campaign can receive a print of one of the celebrated photog’s images that have documented Philadelphia’s activist community for decades with a $50 donation. Harvey Finkle was honored by the Bread and Roses Community Fund in 2009 and is actively documenting the Cheri Honkala for Philadelphia Sheriff Campaign.

From Philadelphia Weekly, regarding the sheriff’s sale protests:

Around 4:30 Monday afternoon, anti-poverty activist and Sheriff candidate Cheri Honkala stands outside Acting Sheriff Barbara Deeley’s Center City office. The veteran protester is joined by her son, Guillermo Santos, and a handful of supporters. She tells members of the press, some onlookers and passers-by that some day, she hopes we’ll all “live in a country that will make it against the law to throw families out on the streets, where people will stand up and say something.” She points at the office and tells the crowd that although 2,000 homes will be sold in sheriff’s sale the next day, “they haven’t even dealt with the corruption yet, in this office,” referring to $53 million the Sheriff’s Office hasn’t been able to account for.

Honkala has also been challenging the position of one of the several Democratic candidates running in a May 15 primary.  The candidate is generally seen as a reformer, and he would like to eliminate the office of sheriff entirely.  However,

Some critics of elimination, such as candidate Cheri Honkala say many sheriff responsibilities will be shifted to the courts if the office is eliminated, making it worse for those hardest hit by the mortgage crisis.

Finally, in a show of support from her hometown, a fundraiser is being held on April 29th in Minneapolis to benefit Honkala’s campaign:

Minneapolis – Artists Support Cheri Honkala for the “People’s Sheriff
Evictions and Sheriff’s-sale auctions of foreclosed properties are core issues for Cheri Honkala, this year’s Green Party candidate for Sheriff of Philadelphia. Originally from the Twin Cities, the two years that Cheri spent in Minneapolis between 2007 and 2009 strengthened her already firm resolve to struggle for the rights of homeowners during the onset of the foreclosure crisis.

The April 29th benefit at The Blue Nile in Minneapolis is one of many being held to support the Green Party candidate for Philadelphia Sheriff across the nation. Honkala is calling for people all over the country to run for Sheriff and put an end to evictions based in foreclosure in their communities. The candidate has received an outpouring of support from artists across the U.S., including the donation and dedication of original music to the campaign from artists Sir Ben Marx (NC), Shamako Noble (CA), Mic Crenshaw (OR) and many others. The election for Philadelphia Sheriff takes place in November, 2011.

Earth Day demonstration at the local Department of Environmental Protection:

Citizens opposed to gas drilling will hold an Earth Day Demonstration Against Fracking, at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, outside the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) office, Two Main Street in Norristown, PA.

The Earth Day demonstration is part of a series of events at DEP regional offices around the Commonwealth. The demands of the demonstration are: “Ban Fracking,” “Protect our Water,” “Protect our Environment,” “No Nukes” and “Clean Energy (wind & solar) NOW.”

This demonstration was called by the Green Party of Philadelphia, www.gpop.org, and it has been endorsed by Brandywine Peace Community, BuxMont Coalition for Peace Action, Citizens for Clean Water and the Green Party of Delaware County.

For more information about the Green Party, please telephone 215-243-7103 or email gpop@gpop.org. For more information on gas fracking, please visit the Green Party of Pennsylvania’s page on the issue at http://tinyurl.com/gpfrack.

At the general membership meeting on the 28th, the party will consider endorsing candidates for city council seats and mayor (there is already a Green candidate for Philadelphia Sheriff):

Green Party Of Phila. General Membership Meeting, 4/28/2011, 7:00 pm (open to public)Date: Thursday April 28, 2011

Time: 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Next reminder: The next reminder for this event will be sent in 7 days, 4 minutes.

Location: Calvary Community Center, Samaritan Room, 2nd Floor

Street: 4740 Baltimore Ave., 48th Street entrance, in West Phila

City State Zip: Phila., PA

Notes: Proposed agenda includes nomination of candidates seeking election in City Council (Districts 1 and and perhaps a challenger to Mayor Nutter for Mayor. Please come out to meet potential candidates, listen to their platforms, and decide if they should run for public office.

SPEAKERS **** MUSIC **** ENTERTAINMENT **** KIDS STUFF **** BBQ **** PICNIC ****Join us to celebrate May Day, a day that is celebrated globally to honor all workers including those who were killed in the Haymarket Riot during the struggle for the 8-hour day. Sponsored by: The PA Labor History Society and PhilaPOSH.

Endorsed by: The Green Party of Phila.

One of the speakers will be Cheri Honkala, Green Party candidate for Sheriff of Phila. Admission is free!

Minor political parties in the country are viewed with suspicion. Many of us dare not question the sanctity of the two-party system and consider third parties as gaggles of eccentrics on the lunatic fringe. For sure, some of them are. The Libertarian Party may espouse some radical changes in government, but it shouldn’t be considered in the same crazy corral as the American Nazi Party or the United States Pirate Party, for example.

The Libertarians, in fact, make some very good points, one of them being that there’s little difference between Republicans and Democrats when it comes to spending Americans’ tax dollars.

Read the rest here.

York, PA - Demonstrators supporting Wisconsin unions waved and shook their signs at drivers who beeped their horns as they passed U.S. Rep. Todd Platts’ office in Springettsbury Township at rush hour Friday.Signs reading “Stand with Wisconsin workers” and “Support a teacher” were held by some in the group who decided to participate in the rally organized by Stephen Baker of the Green Party of York County.

“We’re here to protest Republicans trying to take away years of work on labor rights,” Baker, a Springettsbury resident, said.

A bill eliminating most collective-bargaining rights for Wisconsin’s public-employee unions was passed Thursday. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed it into law Friday.

Friday’s protest in York County was one of several planned by the Green Party. One was held last week in Harrisburg, Baker said, where about 1,000 demonstrators showed support for Wisconsin unions seeking negotiation rights.

Seven more candidates have surfaced in the Luzerne County Council race, bringing the total number of contenders to 28 Democrats, 13 Republicans and one Libertarian.

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Tim Mullen said he will run as a Libertarian.

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Independent, Libertarian and other third-party candidates won’t be selected in the primaries but will be on the November ballot if they secure the necessary nominating signatures after the primaries.

Mullen, who ran against state Rep. Phyllis Mundy in November, will have to collect 995 signatures, said Lou Jasikoff, of the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania. More third-party candidates are expected to enter the race, Jasikoff said.

DePasquale’s proposal would make the number of signatures independent and third-party candidates need to get their names on the November ballot the same as what is required of the Republican and Democratic parties.

Currently, a third-party candidate for governor must get the number of signatures equal to 2 percent of the turnout of the previous gubernatorial election. That number can change with each election — in 2006 it was 26,000 signatures and in 2010 it was 20,000. But it’s always much higher than the 2,000 signatures a Republican or

Democrat running for statewide office needs, said Stephen Baker, chairman of the Green Party of York County.

Similarly, DePasquale wants to see more voters have access to the primary elections where the slate of candidates for the general election is decided. His plan would allow independents to vote in the Republican or Democratic primaries, but not both…

And DePasquale’s proposal to reduce the number of signatures needed by third-party candidates is identical to the Voter’s Choice Act introduced in January by Sen. Mike Folmer, R-Lebanon. The Green Party has long sought the reforms contained in the Voter’s Choice Act, but party leaders have never let such a bill get out of committee.

However, Baker said this legislative session could be different.

Tuesday Feb 15, the Logan Square Green Party in Chicago Illinois are meeting at the Green Party office on Fullerton Ave.

The Northeast Ohio Greens will meet tonight at Mac’s Backs Bookstore 1820 Coventry Road in Cleveland Heights – 7pm-9pm.

Wednesday Feb. 16 the Los Angeles Greens in California meet at 7 PM at the Peace Center on W. Third St.

The Charleston County (SC) Green Party will hold its monthly meeting on Wednesday, February 16, 7-8pm at Earth Fare on Folly Rd Blvd. Look for us in the cafe.

Thursday Feb. 17 the Detroit Greeens are meeting with the Tri-County Greens at the Phoenix Cafe in Hazel Park, MI.

San Fernando Valley Greens will have a candidates forum on February 21.

Do you know of local or state Green Party meetings or other Green Events that we should add to our Events Calendar? Post them here as a comment or send by email to GPW@GreenPartyWatch.org

IPR note: if other parties would like to start putting together a calendar like this to post their weekly meetings around the country, we can work on that here as well.

Local and State Green Party groups meet throughout the year. Is there a local in your area? Do you want to start one? See this nice Organizing Kit put together by GPUS.

Monday Feb 7, the Triangle Greens (NC) met at the Durham County Library.

This Saturday the Green Party of Minnesota is holding their Winter Meeting in Golden Valley, MN, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. See the agenda.

All members are encouraged to attend. We’re planning three sets of workshops hosted by guest speakers. In addition to our traditional favorites like single-payer healthcare and transition towns, we’ll also have action-oriented workshops for people interested in learning how to lobby or be a candidate for office.

Also Saturday the Green Party of Pennsylvania State Committee is meeting in Carlisle, PA at 1:30 PM, followed by an evening session with speakers at 6:30 PM. In the afternoon they will be electing officers and delegates to the National Committee. In the evening:

Please join us for an engaging evening with honored guest speakers from different groups and backgrounds, who offer common ground in addressing critical issues of the day that impact all of us, not just Greens. This evening is for YOU if you are seriously concerned about the state of our voting systems, our environment and our civil liberties.

(1) Marybeth Kuznik, Founder and Executive Director, VotePA — Voting Machines in Pennsylvania, 6:30-7:00

(2) Bill Belitskus, President, Allegheny Defense Project — Marcellus Shale Drilling and its Effect on the Allegheny National Forest, 7:00-8:00

(3) Jim Compton, Anti-Real ID Activist, Boiling Springs, PA — Real ID in Pennsylvania, 8:00-8:30

On Sunday The Portland (Maine) Green Party is hosting a Noon social prior to the 1 PM Maine Green Independent Party’s Steering Committee Meeting, both at the Meg Perry Center in Portland, Maine.

Do you know of other Green Party meetings or events coming up? Let us know at GPW@GreenPartyWatch.org

Last month, Schuykill County’s elected Controller, Melinda Kantner, changed her registration from “Democratic” to “independent.” She will run for re-election this November as an independent candidate. According to this newspaper story, she is the first countywide elected official in approximately 100 years who is neither a Republican nor a Democrat. Schuykill County is in eastern Pennsylvania, and contains Pottsville. The county has a population of 150,000. In the 2008 presidential election, John McCain carried the county with 53.5% of the total vote. Thanks to Third Party and Independent Daily for the link.

Local Chapters of the Green Party are meeting across the Nation this week. Does your local chapter have a meeting or event coming up? If so, let us know! GPW@greenpartywatch.org See our Events Calendar for other meetings and events.

Tuesday February 1, 2011 – Hernando Greens (Florida)

6 PM at the Spring Hill Library, showing the film “Capitalism: A Love Story” followed by a meeting and discussion.

Wednesday February 2, 2011 – Arlington Greens (Virginia)

7 PM at the Clarendon Silver Diner, 3200 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA

Thursday February 3, 2011 – Alleghany County Greens (Pennsylvania)

7 PM at Citizen Power, 2121 Murray Ave, 2nd Floor, Pittsburgh, PA – General Assembly meeting, electing new officers.

Thursday February 3, 2011 – Long Beach Greens (California)

7 PM at Polly’s Coffee, 4606 E. 2nd St., Long Beach CA – Meeting

Friday February 4, 2011 – Clark County Greens (Nevada)

6 PM Meeting, contact them for location: http://clarkgreens.org/

Friday February 4, 2011 – Phily Greens (Pennsylvania) Tom Neilson Show and Fundraiser

7 PM, Roxborough Development Corporation, 6156 Ridge Avenue, Roxborough, Philadelphia. $20/person cover (includes food and drinks). Tom Neilson, www.tomneilsonmusic.com, specializes in songs of nonviolence, liberation and human rights.

Sunday February 6, 2011 – Orange County Greens (California)

2 PM – Super Slow Food Bowl Party! Featuring speaker Heather (Stoltzfus) Westenhofer for our February General Meeting. She will be serving up a Power Point presentation, along with bread and butter made on the spot in a Super Slow Food Bowl gathering! We hope you can join us for this special get together. Irvine Ranch Water District 15600 Sand Canyon, Irvine, CA

The quickly growing Green Party of Philadelphia has a community dinner, citywide meeting, and fundraising concert with folk singer Tom Neilson/the bard insurgent all coming up in the next few weeks. We’re also supporting a march to end foreclosures in Philadelphia on Monday.

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The Green Party of Philadelphia has three events in the next few weeks, and we’re also supporting a march to end foreclosures in Philadelphia organized by the Poor People’s Economic Rights Campaign, taking place on Martin Luther King Day. The first event is a community dinner to discuss organizing on the 22nd, the second is a party meeting (of course open to whoever wants to go) on the 27th, and the third is a fundraising concert with the folk singer Tom Neilson, aka the bard insurgent. More info below.

THE MARCH
March to Stop the War on American Families

“History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people!” ” Martin Luther King, Jr.

One in five families is in foreclosure in America. Join us as we lift up the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Stop foreclosures now!

January 17th ” 12:00 PM
West Side of City Hall (across from Love Park)

Poor Peoples Economic Human Rights Campaign
2200 Coral St Phila, PA 19125

(216) 651-2606

THE DINNER
GREEN NIGHT OUT

Saturday, January 22, 7:00 pm

Enjoy an endless supply of
vegetarian Chinese food.
Discuss neighborhood activism with
Jasmine Rivera, organizer for Action United.
Please join us.

GREEN NIGHT OUT

will be open to the public
and an exceptional bargain
for only $25/person.

Singapore Vegetarian Chinese Restaurant
1006 Race Street
Chinatown, Philadelphia

For more information:
215-243-7103

THE LOCATION HAS BEEN CHANGED from CrossRoads just down the street to the Roxborough Development Corporation (6148 Ridge Ave). Still, many thanks to CrossRoads for the generous help they’re providing.

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=156479271070962&ref=mf

Former sheriff of Graham County, Arizona, Richard Mack, will be a featured speaker at the Spring 2011 Constitution Party national meeting in Pennsylvania.  In a statement by Mack reproduced at the Constitution Party discussion forum, Mack argues that “the greatest threat we face today is not terrorists; it is our own federal government.”  From the CP forum:

I’m Richard Mack, former sheriff of Graham County, Arizona, and long-time crusader for freedom and individual rights. Right now, it is vital that we restore the Constitution as the supreme law of the land. The greatest threat we face today is not terrorists; it is our own federal government. If America is conquered or ruined it will be from within, not a foreign enemy.

In 1994 I filed a lawsuit challenging the Brady bill to stop the federal government from forcing another unfunded mandate down our throats. I won a decision at the US Supreme Court on the issue of States’ rights. This suit catapulted me to national attention, with television appearances on the Donahue Show, Good Morning America, Crossfire, Nightline, CNBC, and SHOWTIME’S the AMERICAN CANDIDATE. I’ve been on over 500 radio talk shows nationwide, ranging from G. Gordon Liddy and Charles Goyette to Derry Brownfield and Pat Buchanan. I have traveled the country extensively and I’ve seen first hand the horrible side effects from politicians who have replaced our Constitution with their own political agendas and party platforms.

Reportedly, Mack endorsed a number of Constitution Party candidates in the 2010 general election.

UPDATE from Gene Berkman in the comments: Richard Mack was the Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate against Sen John Kyl in 2006. Sheriff Mack received more than 48,000 votes, a little over 3% as Kyl was re-elected with 53% of the vote.