US Greens congratulate Caroline Lucas, the UK’s first Green Party member of Parliament, on her election victory

Colombian Green presidential candidate Antanas Mockus holds a strong lead in polls, may become the first Green Party head of a national government

GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES

http://www.gp.org

WASHINGTON, DC — The Green Party of the United States congratulates Caroline Lucas and British Greens on Ms. Lucas’ election to the House of Commons on May 6. Ms. Lucas, the first Green member of Parliament, will represent Brighton Pavilion.

“The election of the first Green to the British House of Commons is cause for celebration among Greens in the US and for everyone who wants to see a new direction in politics and an end to the stranglehold of the pro-war pro-corporate old parties,” said Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party’s 2008 nominee for President of the United States and former member of the US House of Representatives from Georgia. “If Greens can win a seat in the UK, we can win one or more seats in Congress here in America.”

While Ms. Lucas is the only Green Member of Parliament, the Scottish Green Party holds two seats in the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood and there are two Green members in the London Assembly. 13 Green city councillors serve in Brighton and Hove.

“Caroline’s victory was not achieved by watering down the Green message, but by standing for it firmly by advocating economic fairness, social justice, and environmental well-being, showing that voters will support a truly Green alternative when presented with the option. With this in mind, we support Caroline’s call for a referendum on enacting proportional representation for the UK, so that the Green Party’s true level of support can be realized,” said Mike Feinstein, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States. Mr. Feinstein contributed a foreward to Ms. Lucas’ book ‘Green Alternatives to Globalisation’ (Pluto Press, April 2004, http://www.plutobooks.com/disp…

While the Green Party of England and Wales expressed elation over the victory, Ms. Lucas said, “[Brighton voters] have shown that they are prepared to put their trust in the Greens, despite the overwhelming national media focus on the three largest parties and a voting system that is fundamentally undemocratic. I feel humbled by their trust in me, and I am excited by this vote of confidence and I’m looking forward to the challenging task of fully representing the voters of Brighton.” (http://www.greenparty.org.uk/news/2010-05-07-caroline-wins.html)

Videos of Caroline Lucas are posted on the web sites of the BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/election_2010/8667032.stm) and The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/video/2010/may/07/caroline-lucas-green-party).

US Green Party leaders also noted that polls in Colombia show Antanas Mockus, the Green Party presidential candidate, in the lead in the Colombian national election (http://www.mediacoop.ca/story/3345). Since the beginning of the campaign in March, Mr. Mockus moved from 9% to 39% and now leads Juan Manuel Santos of the ruling ‘U’ Party by 12 percentage points going into Colombia’s first ballot.

If Antanas Mockus maintains his lead, he will become the first ever Green Party head of a national government. Mr. Mockus, former mayor of Bogota, is credited with leading the ‘Bogota Miracle,’ which revitalized a crime-ridden city with sprawling slums.