Green Party Watch

I have to apologize for not posting as often here lately, and I am now offering my excuse. Having reported here on so many candidates and campaigns, I find myself now on the other end!

I am running for City Council in Oshkosh, Wisconsin this spring. I am running for local office because I feel that I can help develop a future focused course for the city that incorporates sustainable practices, local economies, increased energy efficiency, decreased energy consumption, and greater stewardship of the two large lakes that border the city to the East and West and the Fox River that connects them.

About the election

It is a non-partisan election. There are 7 candidates vying for 3 seats, all candidates appear on the same ballot, and there are no districts – the entire election is “at large”, i.e. the entire city casts up to three votes per voter. The February 16 primary narrows the field down to six candidates, and at the April 6 general election, the three candidates with the most votes win seats on the seven member Council.

Oshkosh has a population of 65,000. In 2009, 3,622 people voted in the primary (7.85% voter turn out), and 11,267 people voted in the general election (24.72% turnout).That year, Tony Palmeri running for re-election finished first and Bob Poeschl finished third on the ballot, putting two Greens on the Oshkosh Common Council. If I am elected, there will be three Greens on the seven member Council.

Sustainability is Key to the Future Viability of Local Communities

“Community Sustainability” means balancing our present needs with the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Sustainability is about *very* long-term planning. For Oshkosh, this means asking “what do we want to leave for our children and our grand-children?” and “what can we do now to ensure that our children and grandchildren can live satisfying lives in Oshkosh many years from now?” A community wide sustainability plan should be future focused – it should establish goals based on reducing energy consumption, reducing the amount of chemicals that are dumped into our landfills and waterways, preserving or improving the natural eco-system we live in, and ensuring equitable access to resources. As the Chair of the City of Oshkosh Sustainability Advisory Board, I believe that citywide sustainability efforts are extremely important to the long term viability of the city. I place a very high priority on making sure that the city implements a sustainability plan and sustainability measures when it comes to planning, development, housing, transportation, economic growth, public works, public health, parks, and natural resources.
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John Reeder rec’d an important union endorsement recently.  Kudos to John and all the candidates running for local and state offices. Often we in the electorate and in the Green Party suffer from “Presidential” mania as much as the next person, but it is important to know the vital and important job of local representation that is being done by elected Greens, and the campaigns of candidates like John Reeder.

Hey! Do you have $3? Go on over to John Reeder’s website and help him out!

Sure, running as a local candidate may not be sexy and exciting like running for President, but it has some distinct advantages:

1. Physical Geography is often smaller- allowing the candidate as his volunteers a better chance to reach more people.

2. Budget- smaller district/county/city campaigns take less clean election money.

3. Name recognition – you live there, you know the people, and the people have a better chance of knowing you.

4. Many races are not contested, or only have 3 people running for 5 seats on a water-quality board!!!!

5. Future focus- getting elected to a local office- ANY OFFICE- gives you immense credibility among the electorate – you are a known quantity and a safe choice. You can then plan your focus on higher office.

Being a candidate is fun, and as someone who has ran for office, that is no joke. You get to travel and speak to people about something you believe in – and people are desperate to hear your message, even if they don’t agree with everything you say, because at least they know your not bull$hitting them- and that will probably win you there vote!

Greens- Running To Win!

Daryl A. Northrop

http://thecandidate.livejournal.com/