THE VOTE GREEN INITIATIVE PROJECT
If there was anything we learned from 2016 it was the importance of every vote, even before the Some of us also learned that there are many important positions in government beyond the President, which influence or dictate legislation. You know, important stuff, like what referendums go before the president, including whether or not cannabis should still be listed as a schedule 1 narcotic.
So what does that mean going forward?
infamous 1st Tuesday of each November. 2016 proved that most people weren’t happy with either of the major parties candidates for the oval office. It was clear to many people that the primary process was broken for the Democrats, and that most traditional Republicans weren’t happy with their party’s primary results either. Call it politics, as the battle of the shiniest of two turds played out before our eyes.
Clearly, if we want to continue to make changes for cannabis reform, we as voters need to get out earlier than November. Here in Michigan we’re luckier than some states, and have an open primary process. Meaning that you do not have to be registered to a particular party to vote in primaries, however you can only vote for a candidate on one side or the other. You cannot cast more than one ballot during the primaries.
Of course, there are other reasons to register beyond the primaries, and even if you don’t need to, you may still want to. For one thing, joining a party opens doors to meetings and events with like-minded individuals; this advantage is most easily gained by going through the party itself. Find your local or national party website (often broken down by county, making it easier for you to find local representatives), meet leaders in your community, attend a few meetings, talk with people, etc.
Joining a mailing list is also a good way to find new and unique opportunities for supporting your party and the candidates/issues you feel strongly about. Of course, you don’t have to go fanatic crazy: You can register as a member of a party and vote in primary elections without painting your face blue or red or riding a donkey or elephant to work. However, if you’re looking to be active in the community as well, there are a great number of resources available to help you get started.
There are Caucuses for nearly every major group, be it the Black Caucus, the Rural Caucus, the Young Caucus, the Disability Caucus, the Cannabis Caucus and many more. These caucuses have meetings where they hear from their constituents, and that could be you.
You can get started here;
Democrat direction, https://www.democrats.org/
Republican direction, https://www.gop.com/
Libertarian direction, https://www.lp.org/
Green Party direction, http://www.gp.org/
Get out. Get involved. Make a difference. Vote Green!
