In November 2008, Coloradans will choose between 16 candidates for president and vice president. Colorado’s relatively open ballot access has led to the “most crowded ever in a general election”, according to Ballot Access News 1.Who are all these candidates, and what is their platform? I present a rundown of each presidential and vice presidential candidate on the 2008 general election ballot in Colorado, by order of appearance on the Denver mail-in ballot.
Republican: John McCain / Sarah Palin
The conservative Arizona Senator and paleo-conservative Alaskan Governor attempt to make history as the oldest person to be inaugurated President, and the first female Vice President.
Democrat: Barack Obama / Joe Biden
The Illinois Senator and the Delaware Senator attempt to make history as the first African-American President, and the Vice President with the nicest hair.
Constitution: Chuck Baldwin / Darrell L. Castle
The Constitution Party’s stated aim is to reduce government to the functions explicitly enumerated in the Constitution. Their platform is a mix of states-rights politics and Christian morality: against abortion, conscription, executive orders, gambling, gun control, pornography, welfare, and domestic federal aid 2. Baldwin ran as the Constitution Party’s Vice Presidential candidate in 2004. Chuck Baldwin opposed the federal bank bailout, and on September 22, 2008 he received the endorsement of Texas Congressman Ron Paul. Darrell Castle is a former Marine who served in Vietnam, and over the last few years has served in various leadership positions within the Constitution Party apparatus. In 1998, Castle and his wife founded a “Christian mission in Bucharest, Romania which ministers to homeless gypsy children” 3.
Libertarian: Bob Barr / Wayne A. Root
Bob Barr is a recent convert to the Libertarian Party, and a surprising one. As a Georgian Congressman, Barr was highly involved in the impeachment proceedings against President Clinton, voted for the PATRIOT Act and the Iraq War, often supported Drug War policies, and authored the Defense of Marriage Act which barred (haha!) federal recognition of same-sex marriage. Despite this, Barr touts his “leadership in privacy matters” and his nickname “Mr. Privacy”, coined by columnist William Safire. Wayne Allyn Root is a Las Vegas-based TV Producer and sports handicapper who campaigned for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination in 2008 before accepting the Vice Presidential nomination. Root and his wife homeschooled their four children rather than sending them to “government-sponsored public schools” 4.
Green: Cynthia McKinney / Rosa A. Clemente
Cynthia McKinney is a former Congresswoman, and the first African-American female to represent Georgia in that capacity. She has a reputation for being outspoken, including claiming that Al Gore had a low “Negro tolerance level” and that President Bush had prior knowledge of the 9/11 attacks 5. She introduced articles of impeachment against President Bush in 2006. McKinney was previously courted by the Green Party to be their presidential candidate in 2004, but accepted the nomination for the first time in 2008. Rosa Alicia Clemente comes from a community organization, journalism, and hip-hop activism background. The McKinney / Clemente campaign website features endorsements from Roseanne Barr and Professor Griff of rap group Public Enemy 6.
HeartQuake ’08: Jonathan E. Allen / Jeffrey D. Stath
What is a HeartQuake? According to business executive and HeartQuake ’08 Predidential candidate Jonathan Edward Allen, “unless we experience a massive cultural transformation triggered by a reawakening of hearts, there will never be any real change in America.” Allen’s aim is to “break through the entrenchment, dysfunction, and superficiality of our culture in order to address our real issues effectively”. Though both Allen and Obama share many of the same positions (outside of the HeartQuakes, Allen offers a fairly realistic worldview at his Issues HQ), perhaps Obama is not secure enough in his manhood to openly talk about his heart or share poetry on his campaign site. There is not much information on Jeffrey D. Stath on the Internet, and even Allen’s official campaign site does not include a page on the Vice Presidential candidate 7. So meet (or not) Jeffrey D. Stath, required ballot filler.
Prohibition: Gene C. Amondson / Leroy J. Pletten
Are you searching for an “oasis of genuine constitutional rights and moral values”? Maybe the Prohibition Party is for you. Founded in 1869, the Prohibition Party claims to be the oldest “third-party” in the United States, and aims to ban the production and sale of alcoholic beverages. Additionally, the Prohibition Party is against the “homosexual agenda”, abortion, gambling, and “commercial pornography” (no mention of non-commercial pornography) 8. Gene Amondson has served as the Prohibition National Committee Chairman since 2005. In an interview with WikiNews, Amondson admitted that he would prefer Newt Gingrich as his VP candidate, rather than Leroy Pletten. With only nine days until the 2008 election, the “Amondson for President ’08” MySpace page’s only friend is Tom…tough crowd.
Socialist Workers: James Harris / Alyson Kennedy
The Socialist Workers Party was founded in 1938 and originally advocated a Trotskyite communist political plan. James Harris has previously run for President under the Socialist Workers Party in 1996, 2000. Harris was also listed as the SWP candidate for the 2004 presidential election in states where official SWP candidate Roger Calero wasn’t named on ballots–because he is not a natural born US citizen and is ineligible to become President 9. Alyson Kennedy currently works as a garment worker, and has decades of experience working in coal mines across the US 10.
Boston Tea: Charles Jay / Dan Sallis Jr.
The Boston Tea Party is an offshoot of the US Libertarian Party. Charles Jay is on the ballot in only three states: Florida,Tennessee, and Colorado. After failing to secure the VP nomination from the Libertarian Party, Jay ran for President under the Personal Choice Party with VP candidate and former porn star Marilyn Chambers 11. Dan Sallis, Jr. is a Colorado resident and party member who is replacing the national Boston Tea Party candidate on the Colorado ballot only, due to “logistical problems securing paperwork” 12.
America’s Independent: Alan Keyes / Brian Rohrbough
In 2008, Alan Keyes found in the America’s Independent Party what he could not in the Republican Party: a Presidential nomination. However, the party claims it was founded primarily by Keyes supporters. The America’s Independent Party consists of “Reagan pro-life, pro-family, “Peace through Strength” conservatives” who feel the Republican Party has strayed from its Regan-era values. Brian Rohrbough is the president of American Right to Life, the “Personhood Wing of the Pro-life Movement” 13.
Socialism and Liberation: Gloria La Riva / Robert Moses
Gloria La Riva is the Presidental Candidate for the Party for Socialism and Liberation, for which she serves on the National Committee. She favors raising the federal minimum wage to $15, making jobs a constitutional right, and transferring billions from the Pentagon budget into job creation programs. La Riva advocates for a government-run universal healthcare system, free of cost to consumers 14. The party’s national Vice Presidential candidate, Eugene Puryear, is under the age of 35, so cannot be listed on the Colorado ballot. Robert Moses is technically eligible, so his name is listed in place of Puryear on Colorado ballots 15.
U.S. Pacifist: Bradford Lyttle / Abraham Bassford
Tied with the Prohibition Party for the truth-in-advertising award, the US Pacifist Party expresses the “belief that military power profoundly contradicts many religious and philosophic principles, and is a practical mistake in our time”. Bradford Lyttle, founded the USPP in 1983 and ran for the office previously in 1984 and 1996 16. As for Abraham Bassford, I could not find any information about him, other than his association with the USPP ticket.
Unaffiliated: Frank Edward McEnulty / David Mangan
Frank McEnulty has the most plainspoken campaign of any of the 16 candidates. His website (frankforpresident.org — simple enough) features a comparison of his positions with the two major candidates, which he would stand by “any day of the week” 17. McEnulty is the quintessential moderate, everyman, Frank-the-Sportsfan-Father candidate. McEnulty is the candidate for the New American Independent Party, though he did not choose to use that label for his ballot entry. Colorado is the only state in which McEnulty is listed on the official ballot. David Mangan is one of nine VP names used for the McEnulty ticket nationally 18.
Socialist USA: Brian Moore / Stewart A. Alexander
The Socialist USA ticket represents the democratic socialists. Brian Moore has been involved in civic leadership for 35 years, from neighborhood associations to being the player/manager of recreational baseball leagues. He’s also been a healthcare executive and holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Arizona State University. Moore is an unabashed democratic socialist but feels he is able to connect with non-socialist voters due to his ability to identify with average citizens. Stewart Alexander is a former member of the Air Force Reservist and Safeway clerk who ran for Mayor of Los Angeles in 1988 (losing to Tom Bradley) 20.
Unaffiliated: Ralph Nader / Matt Gonzalez
Ralph Nader has a background in social activism and muckracking, and previously ran for president in 2000 and 2004. Matt Gonzalez was one of the first Green Party members elected to office in the San Francisco Bay Area, when he served as a member and president of the Board of Supervisors . He lost the San Francisco mayoral race to Gavin Newsom in 2003 21.
Objectivist: Thomas Robert Stevens / Alden Link
Dr. Thomas Robert Stevens (Hofstra Law Graduate) formed the Objectivist Party on February 2, 2008 — Ayn Rand’s birthday. As could be expected, the political platform is filled with quotes of not-so-easily-digested Randian politcal theory. Ironically, Rand’s relatively less understood Objectivist philosophy replaces the “foggy, undefined rubber-terms of ‘conservatism’ and ‘liberalism'”. Alden Link’s states his highest political priority as energy independence from foreign oil, and believes that nuclear energy offers promise in that arena. His other campaign goals include “ending the drug war, shrinking the size of government, defending America from radical Islamic fundamentalists, ending illegal immigration, encouraging private investment in space tourism, and fighting for the civil liberties of all Americans” 22.
Sources
1. Ballot Access News: http://www.ballot-access.org/2008/10/02/colorado-presidential-ballot-with-16-candidates-is-most-crowded-ever-for-president-in-a-general-election/
2. Constitution Party: http://www.constitutionparty.com
3. Baldwin ’08: http://www.baldwin08.com
4. Bob Barr 2008: http://www.bobbarr2008.com
5. Slate.com: http://www.slate.com/?id=2064530
6. Vote Truth ’08: http://votetruth08.com
7. HeartQuake ’08: http://heartquake08.com
8. Prohibition Party: http://prohibition.org
9. James Harris: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Harris_(politician)
10. The Militant: http://www.themilitant.com/2008/7202/720254.html
11. Charles Jay: http://www.themilitant.com/2008/7202/720254.html
12. Dan Sallis Jr. on PR Log: http://www.prlog.org/10081422-colorado-boston-tea-party-presents-presidential-slate-for-ballot.html
13. America’s Independent Party: http://www.selfgovernment.us
14. Gloria La Riva on the Issues: http://www.ontheissues.org/Gloria_La_Riva.htm
15. Ballot Access News – Colorado: http://www.ballot-access.org/2008/07/11/more-details-on-presidential-candidates-on-colorado-ballot/
16. US Pacifist Party: http://uspacifistparty.org
17. Frank McEnulty: http://www.frankforpresident.org/
18. New American Independent Party: http://www.newamericanindependent.com/VPMAP.html
19. Brian Moore: http://www.votebrianmoore.com
20. Stewart Alexander: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewart_Alexander_(politician)
21. Matt Gonzalez: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Gonzalez
22. Objectivist Party: http://www.objectivistparty.us/
