“On to the General!”

I’ve mentioned previously (here and here) that in the current U.S. midterm election season I’m supporting and working with the Green Party of Minnesota, a people-powerd party dedicated to building a more affordable, sustainable, and democratic North Star state.

We have six Green Party candidates on the ballot in November that many Minnesotans are supporting and getting the word out about – Steve Young and Jane Kirby for Governor and Lieutenant Governor; Seth Kuhl-Stennes for Secretary of State; Ngone Niang for State Senate, District 39; Bruce Johnson for Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District 4; and Rachel Braaten for Three Rivers Park Board, District 3.

Following are some images of my involvement with the Green Party, accompanied by writings by and videos of many of the Minnesota Green Party candidates.

I’ll start by sharing the following from the latest newsletter of the Green Party of Minnesota.

The Green Party of Minnesota is growing rapidly, with many new active members since the 2024 presidential campaign and increasingly younger and more diverse representation. This year we also have more candidates stepping forward, all committed to our foundational Green values* by refusing corporate and special-interest money.

With this growth comes the need for stronger party infrastructure. In recent months we have reinvigorated our social media presence, updated our website, and established a newly functional boardroom in our office. We are also continuing to cultivate leadership that can engage our growing membership, support our candidates, and continue bruilding the infrastructure needed for long-term growth.

The genocide in Gaza, funded by U.S. tax dollars and perpetrated by Israel, has awakened many people to the corruption and Islamophobia within both major parties. The Green Party has long suported Palestinian liberation and the right to return.

In early 2025 the Green Party of Minnesota chartered the Muslim Americvan Caucus, the first of its kind in Minnesota, creating a space for Muslim Americans to organize, build political power, and strengthen their voice within the party. A similar movement is also growing within the Green Party nationally. This year the Green Party of Minnesota is proud to field statewide candidates committed to putting our values into action, including support for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel.

Above: Steve Young (right), Green Party candidate for Minnesota Governor, greets attendees at Twin Cities Pride – June 28, 2026. For more images of our presence at Pride, click here.

Above: Stuffing and addressing envlopes for a mass mailing with Green Party friends Tim and Rachael at Pizza Luce on Franklin Ave., Minneapolis – September 2, 2026. Rachel is the Green Party MN-endorsed candidate for Three Rivers Park Board, District 3.

Says Rachel in a September 30 campaign video:

My name is Rachel Braaten and I’m running for Three Rivers Park Board in District 3. If you live in St. Louis Park, Golden Valley, Crystal, Robbinsdale, Brooklyn Center or St. Anthony, I’ll will be on your ballot on November 3rd. I’ve been leading volunteer habitat restoration groups for over 15 years. I was trained to do that by the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area. In 2020 I began leading groups in Crystal, and now Crstal has an official program that I’ve been leading for the past five years. I’m running because I’d like the opportunity to be a greater voice for our natural resources and the habitat needs for all the wild creatures.

Above: My friend Jane Kirby, Green Party-endorsed candidate for Lieutenant Governor. She’s pictured phone-banking outside the building in south Minneapolis that houses the Green Party MN office – August 26, 2026.

Above: With Green Party friends at Pizza Luce on Franklin Ave., Minneapolis – August 12, 2026.


My friend Seth is the Green Party endorsed candidate for Minnesota Secretary of State. On August 19 he was interviewed by KTTC TV.





For two other videos featuring Seth, click here and here.

Above: Members of the Green Party of Minnesota and its Muslim American Caucus at the October 10, 2026 fundraising event for Women Against Military Madness (WAMM).

Noted the Green Party of Minnesota on its various social media platforms:

We say with a unified voice: FREE PALESTINE. Divest, boycott, and sanction Israel. Defund the military industrial complex, and let’s invest in universal health care, education, and basic human needs like housing and transit. The Green Party can’t be bought, and tonight we represented with the only political candidates of any party at this very well attended event. Let’s normalize integrity!

Above: At left (wearing my Franz Fanon t-shirt) with fellow members of the Green Party of MN’s Lavender Caucus – Thursday, May 28, 2026. Where at The 19 Bar, the oldest gay bar in Minneapolis and among the oldest in the United States.

Above: Green Party candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Steve Young and Jane Kirby, speak at an event in St. Paul – Wednesday, October 14, 2026.

For a June 2026 interview with Steve and Jane, click here.

Above: With Steve Young and Jane Kirby – October 14, 2026.

Above: Green Party MN candidates Ngone Niang, Jane Kirby, and Seth Kuhl-Stennes at a meet-and-greet in St. Paul earlier this evening – Thursday, October 22, 2026.

Above: Prior to this evening’s meet-and-greet was a community forum co-sponsored by the Green Party of MN and entitled “Surveillance Versus Security.” This forum focused on flock cameras, Skydio drones, and the Waterfall company, and explored the question: “Do local government contracts with these companies make us less safe?”

The forum panelists were (from left) Cedar Larson of Women Against Military Madness (WAMM); Ngone S Niang, Green Party-endorsed candidate for Senate District 39; and Mike Madden of Veterans for Peace.

Above: Ngone Niang, Green Party-endorsed candidate for State Senate, District 39 – Thursday, October 22, 2026.

Above: Seth Kuhl-Stennes, Green Party MN-endorsed candidate for Sectretary of State – Thursday, October 22, 2026.

Says Seth:

I am an independent candidate (outside the two major parties in Minnesota) endorsed by the Green Party and am running on a set of issues that ties into their values and the work of the Secretary of State's Office. I do not accept donations from for-profit or nonprofit corporations, Political Action Committees (PACs) or lobbyists. I only accept donations from individuals. So, I am not beholden to any sort of corporate or special interest. I will be responsive to Minnesota voters and businesses and will work to take measures to strengthen our state's democratic institutions and economy.

My top three priorities (in no particular order) are:

Institute an electoral system that honors the will of MN voters through adopting proportional representation for the MN House and ranked choice voting for MN executive branch offices, allowing cities and counties to use these methods for electing multi-member and single-seat local officials, and moving to direct election of the U.S. President by ranked choice voting.

Advocate for state and global well-being by divesting from weapons manufacturers, genocidal nations, nuclear power and fossil fuel extraction, animal harm, and any such companies that profit from those actions and shifting those state investments into entities that uphold peace, human rights, ecological health, and animal welfare.

Foster a healthy MN business and worker environment by facilitating the growth of cooperatives, credit unions, and community land trusts and honoring employers that provide living wages, practice just-cause employment, and support the right to unionize.

Above: Jane Kirby, Green Party MN-endorsed candidate for Lieutenant Governor – Thursday, October 22, 2026.




Left: Bruce Johnson, Green Party MN-endorsed candidate for Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District 4 – Thursday, October 22, 2026.





Finally, here’s and a piece from my Facebook friend Joshua in Michigan on why he’s voting for Green Party candidate Douglas Campbell for Governor. Although Joshua is in Michigan, not Minnesota, his reasoning for voting Green actually applies everywhere.

___________

Why I’m Voting Green

Joshua Combs on why he's voting for
Douglas Campbell for Michigan Governor

Both parties are rotten to the core and I’m done pretending otherwise.

The Democrats are not a resistance. They are the ones who paved the way for Trump in the first place.

In 2015 they had a “Pied Piper” strategy where they deliberately elevated Trump, Cruz, and Carson and told the press to take them seriously because they thought Trump would be easy to beat. In 2022 they spent over $53 million boosting MAGA extremists in Republican primaries for the same cynical game.

They fund genocide. They take corporate money. They lecture you about lesser-evil voting while they push war, fracking, and police militarization, then blame Green voters when they lose elections they rigged against their own base.

The Republicans are worse. [Republican candidate for Michigan Governor] John James is Trump in a suit. Pure culture war, tax cuts for billionaires, book bans, attacks on libraries, attacks on trans kids, attacks on abortion, and selling Michigan’s water and land to corporations.

I’m not voting for either corporate party.

I’m voting for Douglas Campbell, Green Party for Governor, November 3, 2026. Bobbie Clay for Lt. Governor.

Greens don’t take corporate PAC money. We stand for:

• NO VOTE FOR GENOCIDE
• Fully fund libraries and public schools, not charters
• Medicare for All and housing as a human right
• 100% renewable Michigan
• Get money out of politics

Democrats and Republicans built this mess together. Greens are trying to clean it up.

My vote is not wasted. Your two-party system is wasted.

* Following are the 10 Key Values of the Green Party, originally ratified at the Green Party Convention in Denver, Colorado, June 2000. It should be noted that there is no authoritative version of these values. Instead, they are best seen as guiding principles that are adapted and defined to fit each state and local chapter.

1. GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY Every human being deserves a say in the decisions that affect their lives and not be subject to the will of another. Therefore, we will work to increase public participation at every level of government and to ensure that our public representatives are fully accountable to the people who elect them. We will also work to create new types of political organizations which expand the process of participatory democracy by directly including citizens in the decision-making process.

2. SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY All persons should have the rights and opportunity to benefit equally from the resources afforded us by society and the environment. We must consciously confront in ourselves, our organizations, and society at large, barriers such as racism and class oppression, sexism and homophobia, ageism and disability, which act to deny fair treatment and equal justice under the law.

3. ECOLOGICAL WISDOM Human societies must operate with the understanding that we are part of nature, not separate from nature. We must maintain an ecological balance and live within the ecological and resource limits of our communities and our planet. We support a sustainable society which utilizes resources in such a way that future generations will benefit and not suffer from the practices of our generation. To this end we must practice agriculture which replenishes the soil; move to an energy efficient economy; and live in ways that respect the integrity of natural systems.

4. NON-VIOLENCE It is essential that we develop effective alternatives to society’s current patterns of violence. We will work to demilitarize, and eliminate weapons of mass destruction, without being naive about the intentions of other governments. We recognize the need for self-defense and the defense of others who are in helpless situations. We promote non-violent methods to oppose practices and policies with which we disagree, and will guide our actions toward lasting personal, community and global peace.

5. DECENTRALIZATION Centralization of wealth and power contributes to social and economic injustice, environmental destruction, and militarization. Therefore, we support a restructuring of social, political and economic institutions away from a system which is controlled by and mostly benefits the powerful few, to a democratic, less bureaucratic system. Decision-making should, as much as possible, remain at the individual and local level, while assuring that civil rights are protected for all citizens.

6. COMMUNITY-BASED ECONOMICS AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE We recognize it is essential to create a vibrant and sustainable economic system, one that can create jobs and provide a decent standard of living for all people while maintaining a healthy ecological balance. A successful economic system will offer meaningful work with dignity, while paying a “living wage” which reflects the real value of a person’s work. Local communities must look to economic development that assures protection of the environment and workers’ rights; broad citizen participation in planning; and enhancement of our “quality of life.” We support independently owned and operated companies which are socially responsible, as well as co-operatives and public enterprises that distribute resources and control to more people through democratic participation.

7. FEMINISM AND GENDER EQUITY We have inherited a social system based on male domination of politics and economics. We call for the replacement of the cultural ethics of domination and control with more cooperative ways of interacting that respect differences of opinion and gender. Human values such as equity between the sexes, interpersonal responsibility, and honesty must be developed with moral conscience. We should remember that the process that determines our decisions and actions is just as important as achieving the outcome we want.

8. RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY We believe it is important to value cultural, ethnic, racial, sexual, religious and spiritual diversity, and to promote the development of respectful relationships across these lines. We believe that the many diverse elements of society should be reflected in our organizations and decision-making bodies, and we support the leadership of people who have been traditionally closed out of leadership roles. We acknowledge and encourage respect for other life forms than our own and the preservation of biodiversity.

9. PERSONAL AND GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY We encourage individuals to act to improve their personal well-being and, at the same time, to enhance ecological balance and social harmony. We seek to join with people and organizations around the world to foster peace, economic justice, and the health of the planet.

10. FUTURE FOCUS AND SUSTAINABILITY Our actions and policies should be motivated by long-term goals. We seek to protect valuable natural resources, safely disposing of or “unmaking” all waste we create, while developing a sustainable economics that does not depend on continual expansion for survival. We must counterbalance the drive for short-term profits by assuring that economic development, new technologies, and fiscal policies are responsible to future generations who will inherit the results of our actions.

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Butch Ware on Why Third Parties Are Crucial
• Third Parties and the Historical Record
• Elise Labott on How Third Parties Can Revitalize Democracy
• Campaigning With the Green Party of Minnesota
• With the Green Party at Twin Cities Pride
• MPR’s Major (But Unsurprising) Failure
• Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don’t
• “The Fascist Fist Is Tightening Because It Knows That It Is Losing Its Grasp on Us”
• How the Green Party Gained Power in the U.K.
• “Green Wave 2026 is Global”
• Meet Some of the “People-Powered” Green Party Candidates for 2026
• “It Is Our Responsibility to Make a Third Party Viable”
• Something to Think About – December 8, 2024
• Jill Stein on the Importance of the Green Party
• “We Give Reasons for People to Come Out and Vote”
• Butch Ware on “Red & Blue vs Green Politics”
• Building Solidarity on the Left
• “The Moment Is Ripe”: Butch Ware on Building a “True Oppositional Alternative” to the Duopoly
• Butch Ware: “You Can Actually Vote Your Conscience”
• The “Green Smoothie” Option
• Politics 101
• When Democrats Undermine Democracy
• Something to Think About – August 15, 2024
• “Americans Deserve Choices”: Jill Stein on Breaking Points – 4/30/24
• Nick Cruse: “‘Vote Blue No Matter Who’ Is the Privileged Position”
• Howie Hawkins: “The Democrats Are Not the Answer to the Trump/Fascism Problem” (2020)
• “The Next Step Is a Green Step”: Cornel West Endorses Jill Stein (2016)
• Bernie Sanders and Jill Stein: Is a “Historic Collaboration” in the Making? (2016)
• Demolishing the False Narrative About Jill Stein and the 2016 Election
• Hope Over Fear: Voting Green