Illinois Green Party

The Illinois Green Party is a statewide political party in Illinois. The party is state affiliate of the Green Party of the United States. Its stated mission and purpose are to advance the Ten Key Values of the Green Party in Illinois through political means and to support individual members and the formation of Green Party locals.

Illinois Green Party
AbbreviationILGP
ChairpersonZerlina Smith
House LeaderNone
Senate LeaderNone
Headquarters213 S. Wheaton Ave, Wheaton, Illinois, 60189
Student wingYoung Greens
IdeologyGreen politics
National affiliationGreen Party of the United States
Colors  Green
State Senate
State House
Statewide Officers
Local offices4 (2022)[1]
Website
www.ilgp.org

In 2006, the party ran its first statewide candidates led by Rich Whitney, candidate for Illinois Governor, who received 361,336 votes for 10% of the total vote, making the Green Party one of only three legally established, statewide political parties in Illinois, in addition to the Democratic and Republican parties until it lost that status in 2010.

There are currently 12 local chapters affiliated with the party,[2] as well as ten members holding elected office in the state.[3]

The Ten Key Values

Key values of the Green Party platform include the following:[4]

  1. Ecological wisdom
  2. Social justice
  3. Grassroots democracy
  4. Nonviolence
  5. Decentralization
  6. Community-based economics
  7. Feminism
  8. Respect for diversity
  9. Personal and global responsibility
  10. Future focus

Elections

2008

At the 2007 Green National Meeting the Illinois Green Party submitted a Proposal to host the 2008 Green Party National Convention. Green Party National Convention 2008 - Chicago, Illinois Greens from four cities had submitted proposals for the 2008 convention but in the end The National Committee chose Chicago.[5]

As an established party it was entitled to a presidential primary, if at least two candidates qualify for that primary.

In 2007, Illinois law required all candidates in the presidential primary to submit 3,000 signatures by November.[6] On November 5, 2007 the deadline for candidate petitions to run in the Green presidential primary, four Greens filed Cynthia McKinney, Kent Mesplay, Jared Ball and Howie Hawkins. (Hawkins was believed to be a stand-in for Ralph Nader).[7] Only eight state affiliates of the Green Party held presidential primaries in 2008 (other states nominated by caucus or convention).

In 2008, 32 Green Party candidates filed petitions to run in the Illinois Green Party primary by the filing deadline.[8] The party also had the power to fill ballot vacancies in races where nobody is picked in the Feb. 5 primary.[9] Following the primary and state party convention the party has fielded sixty candidates for the November general election.[10]

2010

In 2010, Rich Whitney again ran for Governor of Illinois, hoping to improve on his 2006 result. LeAlan Jones, a journalist and activist from Chicago's South Side, ran for Senate. Both were uncontested in the June primary. Both Whitney and Jones were excluded from televised debates, despite the Green Party's Major Party Status. Whitney and Jones filed a lawsuit against Public Broadcasting Station member WTTW for excluding them.[11] A private vendor of ballots misspelled Rich Whitney's name as Rich 'Whitey' in 23 Chicago wards, about half of which were in predominantly African-American neighborhoods. There is no evidence this was intentional.[12][13]

Jones polled as high as 14% in a June 2010 poll, but ended up with 3.18% of the vote. In August 2010, Whitney polled 11% in a Public Policy Polling survey.[14] However, he ended with just 2.70% of the overall vote. Because neither candidate garnered over 5% of the vote statewide, the Illinois Green Party lost Major Party Status.

2014

Scott Summers ran for governor and Sheldon Schafer ran for secretary of state as write-in candidates after being knocked off the statewide slate.[15]

2016

In 2016, the Green Party ran Scott Summers for U.S. Senate and Tim Curtin for Illinois Comptroller.[16]

Dr. Jill Stein was the party's nominee for President.[17][18]

2020

In 2020, Howie Hawkins won the nomination over Dario Hunter.[19] In the general election Howie Hawkins received 30,494 votes, which is less than 1% of the vote.[20]

See also

References
  1. "Elected ILGP Government Officeholders". Illinois Green Party. Retrieved 2022-06-30.
  2. "Illinois Green Party - Affiliates". Archived from the original on March 11, 2014.
  3. "Illinois Green Party Elected Officials". Archived from the original on October 11, 2014.
  4. "Platform of the Illinois Green Party" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 22, 2010.
  5. "2007.08.30: Greens choose Chicago for 2008". gp.org. Archived from the original on 2009-03-24.
  6. "Ballot Access News - Illinois Greens Determined to Have a Presidential Primary". ballot-access.org.
  7. Illinois Democratic, Green Presidential Primary Filing Deadline is Today Ballot Access News, November 5, 2007
  8. "Local News for Grundy County". Morris Daily Herald.
  9. "Welcome to nginx!". www.pjstar.com. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  10. http://openmindsandopenhearts.blogspot.com/2008/04/illinois-greens-field-60-candidates.html
  11. "Rich Whitney, Lealan Jones, and the ILGP File Suit Against WTTW over Debate Exclusion :: 2010-10-31 00:00:00". Archived from the original on 2 November 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  12. Good, Chris (October 15, 2010). "A Vote for 'Rich Whitey'". The Atlantic. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  13. Lach, Eric. "Illinois Candidate's Name Misspelled As 'Rich Whitey' On Electronic-Voting Machines". Talking Points Memo. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  14. "Brady Expands Lead over Quinn" (PDF). Public Policy Polling. August 18, 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  15. "2 Green Party candidates to run as write-ins". Chicago. 2 September 2014. Archived from the original on 24 February 2015.
  16. "It's Official We WILL be Able to Vote for the Greater Good in Illinois". Archived from the original on 2017-08-16. Retrieved 2016-08-12.
  17. "1 Stein easily wins Illinois Green Party presidential preference vote". Green Party Watch. 21 February 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  18. Brown, Mark (25 October 2016). "Brown: Greens say GOP ploy adds 'insult' but no injury". Chicago: Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  19. PART 2! 2020 Presidential Nominating Convention | Green Party was live. | By Green Party | Facebook, retrieved 2022-09-06
  20. Sandvoss, Steve, ed. (December 4, 2020). Official Canvass of the 2020 Illinois General Election. Springfield, Illinois: Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
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