Jill Stein: Three’s not a crowd

While the contest is between the Democratic and Republican parties, the Green Party candidate’s strong anti-war position is having an impact among sections of American voters

The U.S.’ two-party system has a third challenger — the Green Party’s presidential candidate Jill Stein. Although the Green Party is unlikely to win the election, the support of Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris for Israel’s war on Gaza has given Ms. Stein’s campaign some unexpected momentum in the race to the White House.

This is Ms. Stein’s third attempt in a U.S. presidential race — she previously contested the elections in 2012 and 2016, where she polled 0.36% and 1.07% of popular votes, respectively.

Ecology is one of the four pillars of the Green Party’s core politics, and Ms. Stein has had a long association with environmental conservation and health. As a Harvard-graduated physician, Ms. Stein first focused on environmental degradation and its impact on human health in the 1990s. She led the agitation to clean up the ‘Filthy Five’ coal plants in Massachusetts — Salem Harbor, Brayton Point, Mount Tom, Canal Station, and Mystic Generating Station — which were emitting more pollution than the levels permitted under the Clean Air Act, 1990.

Israel’s war on Gaza has emerged as an important issue in the presidential race, and Ms. Stein has openly advocated putting an end to her country’s supply of arms to Israel. Her anti-war stance opposes that of the Democratic candidate Ms. Harris, who is currently the Vice President of the administration that continues to supply arms to Israel, and former President Trump, who has called himself ‘a protector of Israel’.

Ms. Stein has publicly referred to Israel’s war on Gaza as a “genocide”, and recently said the pager attack in Lebanon was an act of “terrorism”. In a statement issued alongside her running mate Butch Ware, Ms. Stein included U.S. leaders Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, and Dick Cheney in a list of “war criminals”.

“We condemn Benjamin Netanyahu in the strongest terms for his ongoing atrocities in Gaza, which amount to genocide and war crimes,” the statement said.

Ms. Stein’s campaign also promises to abolish all student debt, provide lifelong free public education, increase public school funding, increase estate tax, increase minimum wage, codify Roe v. Wade, work towards a democratically controlled healthcare by replacing private hospitals, private medical practice, and private medical insurance, and more.

Green New Deal

The Green Party’s Real Green New Deal is an important part of Ms. Stein’s presidential campaign to fulfil its goals of combating climate change. A ‘Green New Deal’ has gained popularity in the last decade, but it is non-binding and does not call for a ban on fracking. The updated version promotes ecological sustainability with clean energy, zero greenhouse gas emissions, and economic security for all.

The Green New Deal was also an important part of Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign, who recently entered a publicised altercation with Ms. Stein. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez blamed the Green Party candidate for not being “serious” and called her “predatory”. “Clearly, AOC is the attack dog du jour and the Democrats are running scared. And they should be, because who wants to support a genocide? Who wants to vote for a genocide?” Ms. Stein said in response.

Although the 2024 presidential election, like most elections in the country, is largely a contest between the Republicans and Democrats, Ms. Stein’s anti-war stance appears to be making a dent in Ms. Harris’s vote share in some States. The results of a nationwide poll of American Muslim voter preferences, conducted by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, showed that 29.4% of American Muslims plan to vote for Ms. Harris, 29.1% for Ms. Stein, and 11.2% for Mr. Trump.

Ms. Stein is also leading Harris among Muslim voters in swing States Arizona (35%) Michigan (40%) and Wisconsin (44%). These States are expected to play a key role in deciding the next U.S. President.

Published - September 22, 2024 01:52 am IST