Do you live in New York State? Have you heard about Malachy McCourt, 74-year old author and activist who wants to be the next governor of New York State? If you haven’t, you may want to know that Malachy is part of a slate of candidates nominated by the Green Party. One of Malachys key issues is to bring home the National Guard from Iraq. Since all of the Green Party statewide candidates are pledged to use their office to bring an end to the War in Iraq, they have been named The Green Party Peace Slate.
To achieve his goal of earning a place on the ballot in November, Malachy McCourt needs at least 15,000 signatures from all around the state. These days you find him clipboard in hand, at street fairs and festivals covering the area between New York City and Woodstock collecting signatures.
One of the early signers of the petition was Larry Kirwan, of the band, Black-47. Kirwans signature is on display at Malachys campaign web-site. Having politically active, Cultural Creatives such as Larry Kirwan on board has been a big boost to the Malachy for Governor campaign. In fact, it was Kirwans suggestion to set up the MySpace account for Malachy, which brought a big boost to the campaign this week, with lots of bands and bloggers attaching themselves to the campaign.
The Greens are not an official party under New York State Law. Instead, they are considered an independent body. That makes it harder to run candidates. Though, it also means that any voter in New York can sign the petition, and any voter in New York can gather signatures.
Downloadable petitions are available at many places on the web, including Malachys campaign web-site, www.malachyforgovernor.com, and the state Green Party web-site, www.gpnys.org Or, follow those links to find e-mails and phone numbers for Malachys campaign, the statewide coordinator, or your local contacts.
Many thanks to Kimberly & Ian Wilder for letting me know about Malachy McCourt’s quest for governor.