Critics who are uninformed often accuse the Green Party of doing little more than running presidential campaigns every four years. The truth is that over 5,000 Green candidates have contested for election at all levels since 1990 — 38% for state and federal offices and fully 62% for county, municipal, educational and special district offices. Over 1500 of those candidacies resulted in election to office. See https://www.gpelections.org/ for a wealth of information on Green Party candidates in elections.
In the state of New Jersey, there have been multiple Greens elected as school board members, as well as a partisan Green in the state legislature. Beyond these campaigns, a longstanding goal for the Green Party of New Jersey (GPNJ) has been to offer the voters of this state a Green Party candidate in all 12 congressional districts. In 2024, the state party has not only achieved this goal, but GPNJ is also running a candidate for US Senate and has secured the Jill Stein/Butch Ware ticket ballot access at the top of the ticket. This means, in November, every voter in New Jersey will have at least four Green Party candidates to select on their ballot.
The “Green 13” candidates are a diverse group in many respects — age, gender, race, ethnicity — but their campaigns share the most important components. All 13 are basing their platforms on the four pillars of the international Green politics movement: Ecology, Justice, Peace, and Democracy. More specifically, at this critical moment, all are strong proponents of an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East, the immediate end to the genocide/apartheid of the Palestinian people and the end of the illegal occupation of Palestine.
Below is a brief introduction to each member of the slate:
For US Senate: Christina Khalil
A native of New Jersey (where she grew up in foster care), Christina earned a B.A. in psychology and a master’s degree in social work from Ramapo College. In her free time she has volunteered for community organizations such as the Bergen County LGBTQ+ Alliance. Her top campaign priorities include “a complete redesign” of the nation’s immigration policy (including diverting funds away from ICE), countering climate disruption, terminating the for-profit incarceration system, and alleviating the growing housing crisis. https://khalilforsenate.com/
District 1: Robin Brownfield
Robin, formerly an organizer for the United Farm Workers, is currently an adjunct sociology and labor studies professor at Rutgers University. Working with the American Federation of Teachers she has helped to organize several union locals for adjunct professors in colleges and universities throughout the state. She’s also a well-known artist in the Philadelphia area. Robin’s campaign platform features an “Economic Bill of Rights” that calls for living-wage jobs plus guaranteed housing, health care, and child care. https://www.robinbrownfield4congress2024.com/
District 2: Thomas Cannavo
Tom is a retired attorney who worked for all three branches of government in CD-2. Advocating “people over profits” he supports programs such as Medicare for All and a “just transition” of workers from the fossil fuels industry into the production of renewable and sustainable energy. https://cannavoforcongress.com/
District 3: Steven Welzer
A founding member of the Green Party of New Jersey in 1997, Steve was the party’s gubernatorial candidate in 2013. His activism includes tenant organizing and participation on the Editorial Board of the New Green Horizons webzine. Informed by the Green Party’s key value “Community-based Economics” Steve’s platform highlights the need to foster the revitalization of local community life. https://WelzerForCongress.com
District 4: Barry Bendar
Barry has a B.A. in political science from William Paterson College and 45 years of experience as an I.T. professional. He currently serves as a Co-Chair and Elections Committee Chair of the Green Party of New Jersey. Single-payer health care, animal welfare, and the movement to liberate Palestine are among his top campaign focuses. And as the outreach coordinator of Voter Choice NJ, he has been at the forefront of the movement for Ranked Choice Voting. https://barry4jersey.com/home
District 5: Beau Forte
Beau graduated from River Dell Regional High School in Oradell and Lincoln Technical Institute in Mahwah. He’s running on issues such as universal health care, expansion of Congress, a ceasefire in Israel-Gaza, supporting LGBTQ+ rights, and cleaning up neglected Superfund sites in the 5th District. https://beauforcongressnj.com/
District 6: Herb Tarbous
Herb, who holds a B.A. from Columbia University and works as an engineering consultant, was a co-founder of Voter Choice NJ. As such, his campaign prioritizes introducing “more voices in the system and more choices on the ballot.” In office he would work to rein in the military-industrial complex, pass the Green New Deal, and enact Ranked-Choice Voting. https://herbtarbousforcongress.godaddysites.com/
District 7: Andrew Black
Andrew advocates diverting investment funds from Big Oil and reallocation toward green energy initiatives. His campaign’s priorities include guaranteeing housing and food for all through measures such as graduated income taxation and prohibiting corporate ownership of homes. He notes that we could fund universal health care by reducing the bloated U.S. military budget. https://andrewblackforhouseofrep.org/
District 8: Christian Robbins
Top issues for Christian include ending the Israel-Gaza war and reversing the trend toward the silencing of free speech. He stresses that we need to more immediately and more robustly address the pending climate catastrophe, which has been particularly detrimental to New Jersey due to the hyper-development and suburban sprawl that characterizes our state. https://www.instagram.com/cjfornj8th
District 9: Benjamin Taylor
A Wyckoff native, Ben graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in political science. His platform prioritizes treating healthcare as a human right, funding free higher education at public universities, ensuring abortion rights, and shrinking the military budget. He supports robust citizenship programs for migrant workers and says that doubling the current federal minimum wage would help to boost wages in all areas and at all levels. https://benforcongressnj.com/
District 10: Jon Serrano
A Paterson native and former substitute teacher, Jon is Latino and openly gay. He’s running on a platform that includes equitable access to health care, the separation of church and state, women’s rights, racial justice and clean energy. His education program includes increasing pay for teachers and providing equitable funding for all schools. Jon is a supporter of abortion rights, increased funding for police training, protection of Social Security and Medicaid, decreasing the costs of cancer treatment, more effective regulation of the pharmaceutical industry, and making the wealthy and the corporations pay their fair share of taxes. https://www.jon4congress.com/meet-jon
District 11: Lily Benavides
Originally from Cartago, Colombia, Lily was an organizer with the New Hampshire Immigrant Rights Task Force and a co-founder of Orquideas de Colombia, a folkloric dance group aimed at promoting Colombian culture. She has served as a member of the American Friends Service Committee’s Northeast Regional Executive Committee, as a state representative for Manchester, New Hampshire, and as a member of the Labor, Industrial, and Rehabilitative Services Committee there. Her campaign advocates for immigration reform, reduced military spending, and ending violence against the Palestinians. She has previously been active in the struggles for federal Temporary Protected Status and driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. https://lilybenavides4congress.us/
District 12: Kim Meudt
Kim’s platform centers around Medicare for All, education reform with free higher education for all, as well as (in the spirit of Gandhian nonviolence) reducing the Pentagon budget in order to “stop the endless overseas wars.” She’s supporting an advanced version of the Green New Deal that increases jobs and achieves net zero emissions by 2035. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100013430164226
Great article!