What is the Green Party?

The Green Party is the electoral arm of a growing movement toward sustainability and social justice, based on principles of grassroots democracy and nonviolence. Greens are working to change our institutions to protect people and the environment from exploitation and depletion, and to ensure that everyone is involved in the decisions that affect them.

Aren't Greens just spoilers?

Most elections in the U.S. are plurality, winner-takes-all elections, which allows strong parties to split the opposition vote among smaller parties. Greens oppose this political system, and are calling for electoral reforms such as runoff voting and proportional representation, which allow political parties to appeal to constituencies of all sizes without strengthening the opposition. When Prairie Greens run for office, they run with the hope that they will win that office, never with any goals of splitting the votes. Greens choosing to run for office see themselves as participating in the political process, not "spoiling".

How are Greens different from progressive Democrats and other political parties?

Greens believe that our political and economic systems should be decentralized, so that communities can participate directly in decisions that affect them. We also completely reject violence, corporate rule, and discrimination against any group or class of people. Other candidates, parties, and constituencies share some of our values, but the Greens are the only party that clearly and consistently articulates progressive, grassroots values and supports them on a global level.

Can a third party really survive in the U.S.?

Yes. The Green Party has been growing steadily in the U.S.

Why not just work within other parties?

Greens participate in their communities, and that includes working with other organizations and community groups, including other political parties. At the same time, we don't think we can advance Green values without the political power we gain by building the Green Party. Concentration of political power in a small number of centralized parties is fundamentally at odds with our commitment to grassroots democracy.

What's the economic philosophy of the Green party?

Greens accept that the environment places limits on economic growth, and we call for an economic system that respects these limits. The alternative is a perpetually degraded environment that will eventually become uninhabitable. Unlike other political groups, Greens think that the environmental costs (e.g., pollution, resource depletion) of economic activity should be paid for by the individuals or organizations responsible for the environmental impact, and not by negatively-affected communities.

Is the Green Party just a single-issue party?

The Green party does not focus exclusively on environmental issues, although environmental justice is a core value that informs our work. Equally important, however, is social justice and equality. Our values touch on many issues, including gender equality, criminal justice, arms control, campaign finance reform, and aesthetics.

I'm already in a party. Why should I switch?

You should support the Green Party if you agree with our values and want to help build a political party to advance them. Advancing Green values requires taking action and Greens think building the Green Party is a critical component of that action.

Why are political parties important?

Political parties play a critical role in the development of policy at the local, state, and national level. Greens want fundamental changes in our economic, political, and social institutions, and that means organizing to create change by electing better representatives and mobilizing public opinion to promote Green values. We think any people who are committed to a set of values should be able to build a political party to promote those values, and we want to lead by example.