Green-Rainbow Party Presidential Election Plan
Approved by Green-Rainbow Party State Committee, Sept 13, 2003
2004 is a unique year since the election laws allow us to place presidential candidates on the March 3rd, 2004 presidential primary ballot without gathering a single nomination signature. All the party will need to do is have the co-chairs provide a list of candidates for the primary to the Secretary of the Commonwealth by January 2nd, 2004, and notify said candidates that the party has placed them on the ballot.
2004 is also unique because it is the only even numbered year for many to come when only one statewide office, president of the United States, is on the ballot. If our presidential/vice presidential candidates do not win at least 3% of the vote then we will not maintain ballot status after 2005.
Failure to maintain ballot status would result in the removal of a Green-Rainbow check box on the voter registration forms and a decreased ability to fundraise. Since losing ballot status would mean that we would change to a political designation and political designations cannot change their name, our name, as far as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is concerned, would revert to Massachusetts Green Party. Our next opportunity to regain our ballot status would be 2006. It is unknown if our name would change back to Green-Rainbow once we regained ballot status.
This document attempts to define the processes for:
Decision: We will
require that a candidate be a Green/Green-Rainbow Party member, unless they
have run for president under the Green Party previously. The Candidate Development and Legal
Committee will invite each declared Green Party presidential candidate to be on
our ballot and require that they send us a letter indicating that they wish to
be on our primary ballot and a few other items. The CDLC will give a list of the candidates who have accepted our
invitation to the co-chairs. By law,
the co-chairs will notify the Secretary of the Commonwealth of the candidates
we wish to place on the ballot prior no later than January 2nd,
2004.
Rationale: We should ask
candidates before placing them on our ballot and notify the Commonwealth in a
timely manner.
Decision: We must
notify those individuals who are members as of January 16th, 2004,
that we will be holding a presidential primary, and information about the
candidates on the ballot. We must do
this by our newsletter and web site.
Rationale: The media
will devote scant resources about who is running in our primary. It is our responsibility to provide our
members with information about the positions of our presidential candidates.
Decision: Commonwealth
law requires that the StateCom select our presidential electors and notify the
Secretary of the Commonwealth as to who they are by September 14th,
2004. The StateCom will select our
twelve (12) presidential electors using normal rules at a meeting called for
this purpose, to be held prior to September 2nd, 2004.
Rationale: This is just
following the law.
1 Introduction 1
2 Summary of Decisions. 2
3 Table of Contents...... 3
4 Placing Candidates on the Presidential Primary Ballot 4
5 Notifying Members about the Options on the Presidential
Primary Ballot 5
6 Selection of Presidential Electors....... 6
7 Amendments 7
8 Corrections 7
9 Key Dates for Delegate and Alternate Delegate Selection...... 8
10 Appendices 9
Decision: We will require that a candidate be a Green/Green-Rainbow Party member, unless they have run for president under the Green Party previously. The Candidate Development and Legal Committee will invite each declared Green Party presidential candidate to be on our ballot and require that they send us a letter indicating that they wish to be on our primary ballot and a few other items. The CDLC will give a list of the candidates who have accepted our invitation to the co-chairs. By law, the co-chairs will notify the Secretary of the Commonwealth of the candidates we wish to place on the ballot prior no later than January 2nd, 2004.
Rationale: We should ask candidates before placing them on our ballot and notify the Commonwealth in a timely manner.
The only requirement for a candidate to be placed on the presidential primary ballot is that the candidate be a Green Party member in their home state, provided that their home state has an active state Green Party that has a membership criteria, unless she has run for president of the United States in a past primary or general election. Proof of being a Green Party member is based on the membership requirements of the candidates home state party.
By September 30th, 2003, the Candidate Development and Legal Committee (CDLC) will send a letter via registered mail to each declared candidate requesting that they or their campaign committee provide us with:
1) A letter indicating their intent to be placed on our presidential primary ballot;
2) A picture (preferably digital);
3) A 100 word statement on why they are running;
4) And, optionally, a list potential delegates and their contact information. As specified in the 2004 National Presidential Convention Delegate Selection Rules, this list must be sorted in female-male order. Optionally, the list can include the diversity characteristics of potential delegates.
After September 30th, 2003, the CDLC will follow the above procedure for each new candidate we discover. This process will continue until December 13th, 2003.
The CDLC will provide a list of candidates who have accepted a place on our presidential primary ballot to the co-chairs by December 1st, 2003. This list will include the contact information of the candidates or their campaign committees.
The CDLC will provide a list of candidates to place on the ballot to the co-chairs by December 20th, 2003. This list will include the contact information of the candidates or their campaign committees.
As required by Massachusetts General Laws (Chapter 53: Section 70E see below), the co-chairs shall transmit to the Secretary of the Commonwealth the above list no later than Friday, January 2nd, 2004.
The co-chairs must notify each candidate placed on the presidential primary ballot, by registered mail, of the presence of his name on our list of people we will place on the presidential primary ballot no later than Friday, January 2nd, 2004.
Decision: We must notify those individuals who are members as of January 16th, 2004, that we will be holding a presidential primary, and information about the candidates on the ballot. We must do this by our newsletter and web site.
Rationale: The media will devote scant resources about who is running in our primary. It is our responsibility to provide our members with information about the positions of our presidential candidates.
We will follow the process below in notifying our members of the candidates we are placing on the presidential primary ballot:
1) The Administrative Committee or its delegate would request the latest list of voters from the Secretary of the Commonwealth by January 16th, 2004. This list should be current at least as of the end of 2003 or preferably mid January 2004.
2) The Communications Committee will put together the party newsletter with the candidate information gathered in Section 2 above, and mail it to all members by the end of January.
3) The Communications or the Technical Committee will place the candidate information gathered in Section 2 above in a visible place on our web site as soon as it is available and notify members on our announcements list promptly.
Decision: Commonwealth law requires that the StateCom select our presidential electors and notify the Secretary of the Commonwealth as to who they are by September 14th, 2004. The StateCom will select our twelve (12) presidential electors using normal rules at a meeting called for this purpose, to be held prior to September 2nd, 2004.
Rationale: This is just following the law.
Chapter 53, Section 8 of the Massachusetts General Laws states that the state committee shall hold a meeting for the purpose nominating our presidential electors.
The surnames of the candidates for president and vice president of the United States shall be added to the party or political designation of the candidates for presidential electors.
No later than September 14th, 2004, the co-chairs must provide to the Secretary of the Commonwealth an acceptance form to be provided by the Secretary of the Commonwealth. This form includes the following items:
1) The surnames of our candidates for president and vice president;
2) A list of the persons nominated for presidential electors;
3) The signed acceptance for each candidate for presidential elector.
This acceptance form shall include a pledge by the presidential elector to vote for the candidate named in the filing.
Section 5 of the Green-Rainbow Party by-laws defines the process for selecting multiple selections from among a larger number of possibilities. The State Committee must follow this procedure for the selection of the twelve (12) presidential electors.
No less than six weeks prior to September 14th, 2004, the State Committee shall call a meeting for the purpose selecting the presidential electors. This meeting cannot occur later than September 1st, 2004. At this meeting, the state committee shall select, from among party members, twelve (12) presidential electors. Candidates cannot be self-nominated, but must be nominated by at least two other members.
The State Committee may amend the document provided that the decision-making process as specified in the by-laws is used.
The Candidate Development and Legal Committee may make such changes to this document as to correct any typographical and grammatical errors that do not affect the substance of the plan.
Items in bold are dates mandated by law.
|
2003 |
October |
November |
December |
|
Key Dates |
|
|
1st CDLC compiles list of
Presidential Candidates who have accepted a place on our primary ballot 13th Last day the CDLC will
notify any candidates of our requirements for placement on our pres. primary 20th CDLC finalizes list of
pres. candidates to place on presidential primary ballot |
|
2004 |
January |
February |
March |
|
Key Dates |
2nd
- Last day to submit names for Pres. To Sec. of Commonwealth 16th Request list of voters
in the Green-Rainbow Party 31st Mail newsletter with
pres. Candidate information |
11th
Last day to register to vote in pres primary 14th
Last day to register 1% of voters to keep permanent ballot status |
2nd
Pres. Primary and election of state and local committees |
|
|
April |
May |
June |
|
Key Dates |
6th Last day for members to
apply to be uncommitted delegates or alternated delegates 20th - Last day to mail Acceptance &
Rejection letters to Delegates and Alternate Delegates 30th - Last day for Delegates
and Alternate Delegates to accept |
|
24th 27th
Green Party of the US Presidential Nominating Convention |
|
|
July |
August |
September |
|
Key Dates |
|
3rd Last day to announce
State Committee meeting to select pres. Electors |
14th
Provide president, vice president and presidential electors acceptance for
to Sec. of Commonwealth |
[This includes the relevant paragraph, and has been formatted for clarity.]
The state secretary shall cause to be placed on the official ballot for use at presidential primaries:
1) The names of those candidates or potential candidates for the office of president of the United States whom she shall have determined to be generally advocated or recognized in national news media throughout the United States,
2) The names of any other candidates or potential candidates for nomination for president whose names are proposed therefore by nomination papers prepared and furnished by the state secretary, signed in the aggregate by at least twenty-five hundred voters,
3) And the names of those candidates or potential candidates for nomination for president whose names appear on written lists signed by the chairman of the state committees of the political parties,
arranged in such order as may be determined by lot under the direction of the state secretary, a blank space in which the voter may, if she does not vote for any of the candidates for president whose names are printed on the ballot insert the name of any person of his choice as a candidate for president and a blank space in which a voter may vote no preference.
A vote both for no preference and for a candidate whose name has been inserted by the voter shall be counted as a vote for that candidate.
The chairman of the state committee of a political party and the state secretary shall submit lists or prepare lists of candidates for president, as aforesaid, no later than the first Friday in January and shall notify each such candidate forthwith, by registered mail, of the presence of his name on said lists. No name shall be removed from said lists, nor from the ballot, unless such candidate shall file with the state secretary an affidavit stating that she does not desire his name printed upon said ballot at the forthcoming presidential primary. Such affidavit shall be filed with the state secretary no later than five o'clock post meridian on the second Friday in January.
All certificates of nomination and nomination papers shall, in addition to the names of candidates, specify as to each,
1) his residence, with street and number, if any,
2) the office for which she is nominated, and
3) except as otherwise provided in this section and except for elections which are not preceded by primaries or political party caucuses, the political designation, if any, which she represents, expressed in not more than three words.
This information, in addition to the district name or number, if any, shall be specified on the nomination paper before any signature of a purported registered voter is obtained and the circulation of nomination papers without such information is prohibited. Certificates of nomination made by convention or caucus shall also state what provision, if any, was made for filling vacancies caused by the death, withdrawal or ineligibility of candidates.
The state committees of the respective political parties at a meeting called for the purpose shall nominate the presidential electors. The surnames of the candidates for president and vice president of the United States shall be added to the party or political designation of the candidates for presidential electors. Such surnames and a list of the persons nominated for presidential electors, together with an acceptance in writing signed by each candidate for presidential elector on a form to be provided by the state secretary, shall be filed by the state chairmen of the respective political parties not later than the second Tuesday of September. Said acceptance form shall include a pledge by the presidential elector to vote for the candidate named in the filing.
To the name of each candidate for alderman at large shall be added the number of the ward in which she resides. To the name of a candidate for a town office who is an elected incumbent thereof there may be added the words ""Candidate for Re-election''.