As a Tea Party Candidate, an anti-fracking Independent, a Democrat, or an enlightened Home Rule Republican. But run for local office - this year - or face the dire consequences of having some fracking turncoats hand your town/ county over to a bunch of wingdings from Oklahoma. Because if you do not have political power - you got next to nothing. This from The Isaac:
Across the state, many of us have worked hard to become the decision makers, rather than the ones trying to hold them accountable. This election season has many small town board seats open, particularly in Chenango County and several in Broome and other key counties. In order to really achieve concrete victories, like bans and moratoria, we need to run and win races.Working Families Party has a ban position on fracking, and can help offer political advice, and a party line to run on.
http://www.
It is not out of the question to run as a Republican - since, given the state of confusion the state is in on fracking - a town moratorium is about the most sensible thing an elected official can support. Even a Republican elected official.
http://www.nofrackingway.us/2013/02/07/republican-home-rule/
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While I am happy locally Working Families Party (WFP) gave the endorsement to Barrett Esworthy (vs. Libous), who while a registered Democrat, did not get the Democratic endorsement due to a petitioning faux pas.
Mostly WFP (like the Conservative Party of NY, and the Liberal Party) do not run their own candidates, but endorse big-R or big-D candidates. This has the effect of giving more ballot area to the Big-R and Big-D candidates, while further squeezing third party candidates (Greens, Socialist Worker, Libertarian) into sometimes sharing a row.
I did analysis of the 2000 presidential election in Broome County, and the results matched to within a percentage point to the amount of ballot area given to each candidate.
Parties like WFP which exist mostly to endorse big-Rs and big-Ds, is an example of “Fusion voting” or “cross ballot endorsement”. It is ILLEGAL in 42 states, and only legal in 8.
The Broome County WFP has a sorted past. They refused to give a Green, Mike Vercolen, the endorsement, even though he met the criteria in every way, this bolstering the theory the WFP only exists to support big-D Dems.
During the Cuomo election, the WFP was giving out “No Fracking Way” bumperstickers
( http://action.workingfamiliesparty.org/images/BumperStickerSampleFINAL%281%29.jpg )
but endorsed candidates (like Cuomo, and Lupardo) who have been very weak on the issue.
WFP sells themselves by marginalizing ideological third party candidates which have the potential to actually get something changed. “Don’t throw your vote away on an unelectable Green” they say. “MAKE YOUR PROTEST VOTE COUNT!” they say by voting WFP.
Only in reality, we end up with the Big-D Dem in office, which is at-best only marginally better than a big-R Repub in terms of 99.6% of the issues that face Americans. Then the Big-D dem gets more ballot area, and the Green gets even less.
I agree with the other 42 states. Fusion Voting should be ILLEGAL in NY.