Green Party of Rhode Island - History

History

The Green Party of Rhode Island was founded by a meeting of 40 Green activists on March 6, 1992.

In 1994, Green candidate Jeff Johnson of South Kingstown, Rhode Island gained about 6% of the vote in an election for Lieutenant governor. To date, no statewide election has matched that vote share result for a Green candidate. Johnson also ran for State House of Representatives in 1996 and for Lieutenant governor again in 1998, receiving a lesser share of the vote.

In November 1996, GPRI was one of 12 founding parties in the Association of States Green Parties, renamed the Green Party of the United States in 2001.

In the 1996 and 2000 presidential elections, GPRI put Ralph Nader on the Rhode Island ballot for U.S. President, and Nader's vote share in 2000 (6.12%) was enough to win major party status for the GPRI.

In 2002, David Segal became the first Green to gain public office in Rhode Island, when he won a four-candidate election to the Providence City Council.

In 2004, the U.S. Green Party's presidential nominee, David Cobb, failed to win at least 5% in Rhode Island, and GPRI lost major party status.

Despite losing major party status in 2004, the party continued to support Green candidates as an independent political organization. During this period, Jeff Toste won about 30% of the vote in Providence's 5th State Senate district, which remains the nation's highest-ever vote share by a Green candidate for State Senate.

Former Georgia Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney attended the party's state convention in 2007, recruiting volunteers for her 2008 presidential campaign. McKinney won 6 of 8 Rhode Island delegates in the 2008 Green caucus in Rhode Island, but ultimately received less than 1% of the vote in the 2008 U.S. Presidential election in Rhode Island.

In the 2012 Presidential election, the party supports Jill Stein's presidential candidacy. Stein and her running mate, Cheri Honkala, officially gained ballot access on September 13, 2012.