Hartford, CT – August 11 – The culmination of three months’ diligent effort, the Green Party of Connecticut has just amassed between 14,000 and 15,000 signatures of voters in order to secure Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein’s place on the Constitution State’s ballot.
The final batch of signatures were collected on 1,212 petition sheets, originally distributed throughout the state by over 400 party volunteers, independent activists and paid petitioners working though the non-profit Free & Equal, delivered Wednesday, August 10, to the Secretary of State’s office by CTGP co-chair and State Senatorial candidate, 1st District, Barbara Barry.
Current state law stipulates petitioners must gather 7,500 valid signatures of registered voters in support of a third-party candidate in order to appear on the state’s presidential ballot line in November. According to fellow co-chair Mike DeRosa, the near 100 percent additional names provides a firm safety margin against signatures deemed unqualified by the Secretary of State, Denise Merrill, "barring any irregularities with how they are evaluated."
In a tempestuous presidential election year where the reaction of a growing number of voters to both major party candidates ranges from disappointment and fear to outrage, both the opportunity and necessity for real choices in the race for the Oval Office, representing new thinking and practical, constructive solutions, is more crucial than ever.
Adds DeRosa, who, as candidate for U.S. Representative in the 1st District, has made more democratic third-party ballot access a long-standing focus with the state Green Party, "We now have to wait about two weeks until we know if Stein has made it."
About the Green Party of Connecticut and Jill Stein
A unity of local Green Party chapters, the CTGP (www.ctgreenparty.org) is committed to grassroots democracy, social justice, non-violence and ecological wisdom. These are the Four Pillars of all Green parties worldwide and are the first four principles of the Ten Key Values of the Green Party (including decentralization, community-based economics, feminism and gender equity, respect for diversity, personal and global responsibility, future focus and sustainability). We do not accept contributions from corporate PACs.
Dr. Jill Stein (www.jill2016.com) was the Green Party’s 2012 candidate for President and holds the record for most votes ever received by a woman candidate for President of the United States in the general election. She is a mother, physician, and pioneering environmental-health advocate and has helped lead initiatives to fight environmental racism, strengthen local green economies and revitalize democracy. She has helped win victories in campaign finance reform, racially-just redistricting, green jobs and power plant toxic remediation. She was an organizer for the Global Climate Convergence for People, Planet and Peace over Profit.