Green party
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A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice.
Green party platforms typically embrace
Green parties exist in nearly 90 countries around the world, many of which are members of Global Greens.
Definitions
There are distinctions between "green" parties and "Green" parties. Any party, faction, or politician may be labeled "green" if it emphasizes environmental causes. In contrast, formally organized Green parties may follow an ideology that includes not only environmentalism, but often also other concerns such as social justice and consensus decision-making. The Global Greens Charter lists six guiding principles which are ecological wisdom, social justice, participatory democracy, nonviolence, sustainability and respect for diversity.[1]
History
Political parties campaigning on a predominantly environmental platform arose in the early 1970s in various parts of the world.
The world's first political parties to campaign on a predominantly environmental platform were the United Tasmania Group, which contested the April 1972 state election in Tasmania, Australia, and the Values Party of New Zealand, which contested the November 1972 New Zealand general election.[2] Their use of the name 'Green' derived from the 'Green Bans': an Australian movement of building workers who refused to build on sites of cultural and environmental significance.[3]
The first green party in Europe was the Popular Movement for the Environment, founded in 1972 in the
The first Green Party to achieve national prominence was the
In
In 2022
Around the world, individuals have formed many Green parties over the last thirty years. Green parties now exist in most countries with democratic systems, from Canada to Peru, from Norway to South Africa, from Ireland to Mongolia. There is Green representation at national, regional and local levels in many countries around the world.
Most of the Green parties are formed to win elections, and so organize themselves by the presented electoral or political districts. But that does not apply universally: The
Support
Academic research has uncovered striking international consistency in the typical demographic and attitudinal profile of Green party supporters. In particular, Green voters tend to be young, highly educated, disproportionately female, and employed in the social and cultural services (healthcare, teaching, the arts, etc.), whilst also displaying above-average levels of environmentalism and social liberalism, as well as being left-leaning.[4][5] Additionally, Green parties also tend to attract greater levels of support in countries defined by high levels of economic development and low levels of unemployment, as well as the presence of tangible environmental disputes (such as nuclear power production) and active major party competition on the environmental issue.[6] The former two factors are believed to generate cohorts of voters with enough material security to devote their attention to 'higher' goals such as environmentalism; the latter two help raise the profile of the Green's own policy positions and statements (providing that the major parties do not act so quickly to the rising salience of environmentalism as to usurp the issue entirely and completely preempt the development of a separate ecological party). Their supporters sometimes blame the economical system for the environmental issues neglecting any green free-market liberal capitalist alternatives.
Alliances
Depending on local conditions or issues, platforms and alliances may vary. In line with the goal of democracy, neighboring
Green parties are often formed in a given jurisdiction by a coalition of scientific
A
Some Greens, such as those in
Alliances often highlight strategic differences between participating in parties and advancing the values of the Green movement. For example, Greens became allied with centre-right parties to oust the centre-left ruling
U.S. Greens grew dramatically throughout 2001. However, stable coalitions (such as that in Germany) tend to be formed between elections with left-wing parties on social issues, and 'the grassroots right' on such issues as irresponsible corporate subsidies and public ethics.
On 13 June 2007, the Irish Green Party, represented by six members of parliament or TDs, agreed to go into a coalition government for the first time in their history, with Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats (the Progressive Democrats later dissolved as a party, though their members remained in parliament). The Green Party held two Cabinet seats, as well as two junior ministries, until their withdrawal from government in January 2011. They lost all of their six seats in the following month's general election, but won two in the 2016 general election, and twelve seats in the 2020 general election, and entered government again in June 2020.
In the
Green parties often have to join coalitions/alliances with other parties within parliament as they rarely get a large share of the vote (rarely polling above 10% at a national level).[7] Their involvement in coalition governments is important in getting environmental issues on the political agenda, however they are often limited in the amount that they can succeed given they are not the majority within the alliance.[7]
Green parties
Africa
Some national Green parties began forming in Africa in the 1980s and 1990s, but they often struggled to gain influence.[8][9]
Asia and Oceania
Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu
Green parties have achieved national or state parliamentary representation in New Zealand, Australia and Vanuatu. In New Zealand the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand currently holds 15 seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives after the 2023 general election.[14] The Australian Greens hold 11 seats in the Australian Senate and 4 seats in the Australian House of Representatives. Since 2004, they have received more votes than any other third party in every federal election. They also have representation in the upper and lower houses of state parliaments of five states and in the unicameral chamber of one territory. Greens also hold representative positions in local government across New Zealand and Australia (where a number of local government authorities are controlled by Green councilors). The Greens took the seat of Melbourne from the Australian Labor Party in 2010 with candidate Adam Bandt. This was the first time the Greens have won a Lower House seat at a general election (although they have previously won two seats at by-elections).
In the 2008 ACT election in Australia, the Greens won 15.6% of the vote, winning 4 out of 17 seats. Shane Rattenbury was elected the speaker of the assembly, the first time a Green party member had held such a position in any parliament or assembly in Australia. However, they retained only one seat at the 2012 election in the same territory.
The
There is a
Lebanon
The Green Party of Lebanon was founded in 2008 as a secular party.[20] Its first president was Philippe Skaff, CEO of Grey Advertising.[21] The party debuted with the May 2010 municipal elections.[22] In 2011, the party became the first political party in Lebanon to elect a female leader when Nada Zaarour was elected its president.[23]
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia
The
Taiwan
The Green Party Taiwan was founded in 1996. It is a small party which have often associated with Democratic Progressive Party, a major political party in Taiwan.
Europe
Belgian and German roots
The first green parties in Europe were founded in the late 1970s, following the rise of
Although they did not win any seats, the groups in this association formally agreed to become a party and won a breakthrough in the German national elections of 1983. They were not the first Green Party in Europe to have members elected nationally but the impression was created that they had been, because they attracted the most media attention. This was partly due to their charismatic leader
1984–1989: A new political force
In 1984 Greens agreed a common platform for the European Parliament Elections and the first Green Members of the European Parliament were elected here. Germany, a stronghold of the Green movement, elected seven MEPs; two more came from Belgium and two from the Netherlands. As those eleven MEPs did not entitle the Greens to form a parliamentary group on their own, they concluded an alliance with MEPs from Italy, Denmark, and regionalists from Flanders and Ireland to form the GRAEL (Green Alternative European Link) group, also known as the
Since the 1990s
After years of co-operation between the national Green parties, they formed a pan-European alliance that unites most European Green parties. The Greens are a party within the European parliament with 46 seats, as of June 2009. It has a long-standing alliance with the European Free Alliance (EFA), an alliance of "stateless nations", such as the Welsh nationalist Plaid Cymru and Scottish National Party. Together European Green Party/EFA have 58 seats and they are the fourth largest party in the European Parliament.
While on many issues European Greens practice the same policies, one issue divides European Green parties: the European Union. Some Green parties, like the Dutch
Some Green parties have been part of governing coalitions. The first one was the Finnish
In Scandinavia, left-wing socialist parties have formed the
In some countries Greens have found it difficult to win any representation in the national parliament. Three reasons can be found for this. It includes countries with a first past the post electoral system, such as the United Kingdom. However, despite the
The
In 2021 Croatian local elections We can! party became the largest political party in the Zagreb Assembly, winning 23 seats in total. Their mayoral candidate Tomislav Tomašević won a landslide victory on 31 May.[27]
Bulgaria
In 2021, after anti-government protests in Bulgaria, Volt Bulgaria became a member of the Stand Up! Mafia Out! alliance. Green Movement (ZD) also became a member of an anti-corruption coalition - Democratic Bulgaria (DB). Eco Voice (Ecoglasnost/Екогласност) remained a member of the BSP for Bulgaria (БСП за България, БСПзБ, BSPzB) coalition. After the elections all of them got into parliament, but a government wasn't formed. After the snap election, which also didn't form a government, Volt Bulgaria left ISBG and joined the We Continue The Change (Продължаваме промяната, ПП, PP) coalition, which won the election and formed a government with BSPzB, DB and the populist ITN. ITN withdrew from the coalition, which later lost a vote of no confidence. For the next elections in 2022, the Party of the Greens (Партия на зелените, ПнЗ, PnZ) joined[28] the Bulgarian Rise (Български възход, БВ, BV) coalition. After a government wasn't formed another round of snap elections were called. This time PP, DB, BZNS and United Agrarians formed the PP-DB coalition which won 2nd place, but managed to agree on a government with the largest parliamentary group - the Christian democratic GERB-SDS coalition.
Germany
As mentioned above, the German green party holds strong influence in terms of green politics in Europe. The German green party: Alliance 90/The Greens (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) was founded in 1993 after the West German green party (Die Grünen, formed in 1980) and the East German green party (Bündnis 90, formed in 1990) joined after the reunification of Germany.
in 1998, Alliance 90/The Greens joined a coalition government with the SPD, forming a Red-Green alliance that would last until 2005. In order to agree to the coalition, Alliance 90/The Greens had 3 priorities: to reduce employment, close nuclear-power stations/Germany to not rely on nuclear power, and for citizenship laws to be reformed.[7] The coalition remained in place following the 2002 election. However, green policies were no longer considered to be a focal point so much, with unemployment growing and other economic issues being more pressing, leading to the rise of the CDU/CSU, and the eventual loss of a majority in parliament.[29]
Turkey
Greens and the Left Party of the Future is a left-libertarian and green party in Turkey. It was founded on 25 November 2012 as a merger of the Greens Party and the Equality and Democracy Party.
Prominent members include Murat Belge, left-liberal political author and columnist for Taraf; Kutluğ Ataman, filmmaker and contemporary artist; and Ufuk Uras, former Istanbul deputy and president of the Freedom and Solidarity Party.
The party is one of the participants in the Peoples' Democratic Congress, a political initiative instrumental in founding the Peoples' Democratic Party in 2012.
The Greens, along with feminists, left YSGP en masse in 2016, citing its lack of democratic decision making practices. They and a new generation of activists reestablished the
North America
As of the
Canada
The first Green parties in Canada (both federal and provincial) were founded in 1983. The strongest provincial Green parties are the
In the 2008 Vancouver municipal election, Stuart Mackinnon, a member of the Vancouver Green Party, was elected to the Vancouver Parks Board. Since that time former Green Party of British Columbia leader, and deputy-leader of the federal Green party, Adriane Carr won the Greens' first seat on Vancouver City Council, in 2011 municipal elections.
United States
In the United States, Greens first ran for public office in 1985. Since then, the
As of April 2018, 156 Greens held elective office across the US in 19 states. The states with the largest numbers of Green elected officials are California (68), Connecticut (15), and Pennsylvania (15). Titles of offices held include: Alderman, Auditor, Board of Appeals, Board of Finance, Board of Selectmen, Borough Council, Budget Committee, Circuit Court Judge, City Council, Common Council, Community College District Board of Trustees, Community Service Board, Conservation Congress, Constable, County Board of Supervisors, County Supervisor, Fire Commission, Fire District Board, Inspector of Elections, Judge of Elections, Mayor, Neighborhood Council Board, Park District, Parks and Recreation District Board, Library Board, Planning Board, Public Housing Authority Resident Advisory Board, Public Service District, Rent Stabilization Board, Sanitary District Board, School Board, Soil and Water Conservation Board, State Representative, Town Council, Transit District Board, Village Trustee, Water District Board, and Zoning Board of Appeals[36] As of October 2016, 100 Greens held elected office across the US.[36] The first US Green elected to a state legislature was Audie Bock in 1999, to the California State Assembly, followed by John Eder to the Maine House of Representatives in 2002 and 2004 and Richard Carroll to the Arkansas House of Representatives in 2008. While in office in 2003 in the New Jersey General Assembly, incumbent Matt Ahearn made a party switch to Green for the remainder of his term.
The Green Party has contested seven presidential elections: in 1996 and 2000 with Ralph Nader for president and Winona LaDuke as vice president, in 2004 with David Cobb for president and Pat LaMarche for vice president, and in 2008 with Cynthia McKinney for president and Rosa Clemente for vice president. In 2000, Nader received more votes for president than any Green Party candidate before or since. Jill Stein ran for president on the Green ticket in 2012 and 2016; the vice-presidential candidates were Cheri Honkala in 2012 and Ajamu Baraka in 2016. Stein, who received over one million votes in the 2016 race, led unsuccessful attempts toward 2016 election recounts in three states: Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. In 2020, Howie Hawkins, a founder of the Green Party, was the party's presidential nominee.
South America
Brazil
The Brazilian Green Party was constituted after the military dictatorship period and, like other Green Parties around the world, is committed to establishing a set of policies on ensuring social-equity and sustainable development. One of the party's founding members was the journalist and former anti-dictatorship revolutionary Fernando Gabeira, Alfredo Sirkis and Carlos Minc. Among the main items on the Green Party's agenda are federalism, environmentalism, human rights, a form of direct democracy, parliamentarism, welfare, civil liberties, pacifism and marijuana legalization under specific conditions.
Green Party's candidate
Marina Silva left the party the following year.
In the 2014 presidential election the Green Party's candidate Eduardo Jorge received 0,61% of the vote. He garnered attention for campaigning on a progressive platform supporting policies such as cannabis legalization and the decriminalization of abortion. Because of his perceived eccentricity and spontaneity while participating in the televised debates, Jorge became the subject of several memes on the internet. The party elected 6 federal deputies and 1 senator.
In 2016, the Greens in Congress voted in favour of the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff. The party later went on to support president Michel Temer who succeeded her.
For the 2018 presidential election the party formed the coalition United to transform Brazil with the Sustainability Network (REDE), in support of the candidacy of Marina Silva in her third run for the presidency. Eduardo Jorge was chosen as her running mate. Despite faring well in the initial polls, Silva ultimately received 1% of the vote. The party elected 4 federal deputies.
Colombia
In the 1990s, the
Green parties in government
While most green parties remain
See also
- Green and chartreuse – colors associated with the Green movement
- List of green political parties
- Outline of green politics
References
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- ^ "Global Greens Charter". Global Greens. 2012. Archived from the original on 2017-11-15. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
- ^ Dann, Christine. "The development of the first two Green parties New Zealand and Tasmania". From Earth's last islands. The global origins of Green politics. Global Greens. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011.
- ^ Bevan, RA (2001), Petra Kelly: The Other Green, New Political Science, vol. 23, no. 2, November, pp. 181-202
- ISBN 978-0415690522.
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- ^ a b c Carter, N. (2018). The Politics of the Environment: Ideas, Activism, Policy (3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 120.
- ^ "Green politics make their debut". RFI. March 4, 2010.
- ^ "Africa's Green parties bet on international help | DW | 15.07.2019". DW.COM.
- ^ "Wangari Maathai biography | Women". en.unesco.org.
- ^ "Distinguished African Greens". African Green Federation. June 17, 2011.
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- ^ "Moana Carcasses named new Vanuatu PM", Radio Australia, 25 March 2013
- IMF
- ^ "Nation's interest first: Carcasses" Archived 2013-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, Vanuatu Daily Post, 26 March 2013
- ^ "Papua New Guinea Greens Party" Archived 2012-08-19 at the Wayback Machine, Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates Commission
- ^ "Going Green", Fiji Sun, 2 June 2013
- ^ "Green Party holds annual congress in Beirut | News, Lebanon News". The Daily Star. 2010-02-12. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ "Lebanon's Green Party | The Lebanese Inner Circle : Blog". Theinnercircle.wordpress.com. 2008-08-22. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ "A Green Party Grows in Lebanon". Green Prophet. 2009-12-07. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ "Green Party becomes first in Lebanon to elect female leader | News, Lebanon News". The Daily Star. 2011-09-06. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ Gray, Louise (7 May 2010). "General Election 2010: first Green MP edges out Labour". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
- ^ "Text about the Green East-West Dialogue". Archived from the original on January 10, 2003.
- ^ "The Green East-West Dialogue". Archived from the original on January 13, 2003.
- ^ "Leftist-green candidate elected mayor of Croatia's capital". The Independent. 2021-05-30. Retrieved 2021-12-15.
- ^ Cik, Central Electoral Commission. "РЕШЕНИЕ № 1309-НС София, 17 август 2022 г." cik.bg. Archived from the original on 2023-03-02.
- ^ Carter, N. (2018). The Politics of the Environment: Ideas, Activism, Policy (3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 122.
- ^ Partisi, Yeşiller (September 21, 2020). "Greens in Turkey Launch Green Party!".
- ^ "Seven things to know about the P.E.I. election results". CTV News, April 23, 2019.
- ^ "B.C. Green Party agrees to support NDP in the legislature". CBC News, May 29, 2017.
- ^ "Canada election 2019: Results from the federal election". Global News, October 21, 2019.
- ^ "Liberal MP Blair Wilson Goes Green, Giving the Party Its First Seat on Parliament Hill - CityNews". Archived from the original on 2011-06-29. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ^ "Green Party Officeholders 2016 :: Mayors". Gp.org. Archived from the original on 2013-09-22. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ a b "Officeholders". www.gp.org.
External links
- Global Greens – The official global organization of Green parties worldwide of Green parties