The Howie Hawkins Interview: Part II
I interview former Presidential candidate and co-founder of the US Green Party, Howie Hawkins about the upcoming election and whether he will run again.
Howie Hawkins is a dedicated activist and co-founder of the US Green Party. He was the Green’s Presidential Candidate in the 2020 election, and is a pillar of New York politics, having run for Governor multiple times. In New York’s 2014 gubernatorial election he upset the odds by getting 4.8% of the vote (which is no mean feat for a third party), applying pressure on the now disgraced former governor Andrew Cuomo.
In my opinion this was one factor that worried the state’s Democratic party elite and made them summon their rather counterintuitively anti-democratic tendencies to make it harder for smaller parties in future elections. As Howie told me back in August 2022, “New York State passed an exclusionary ballot access law in 2020 that tripled the signature and vote requirements for minor parties to get and stay on the ballot”. This anti-democratic act naturally handicapped Howie’s 2022 gubernatorial campaign.
But despite (or maybe because of) the way his fearless activism evidently instils fear in the elite, he continues to speak up for what he believes in. Howie was an environmentalist before it was cool, and continues to champion an array of progressive policies such as Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) and Universal Health Care (to name only two). [You can learn more about RCV in this explainer video if you so desire].
US Politics is continuing to trundle through a particularly tumultuous time. With a Biden-Trump rematch seemingly on the agenda (presuming no health incidents or similarly seismic event happens), which very few Americans actually want, it is incredibly easy to lose any semblance of hope within the political institutions which feel as if they can only do one thing, in letting everyone down.
However, I see people like Howie as the antidote to this chaos, or as the light at the end of the tunnel. Despite how dark things may seem, people like Howie ensure I am not completely void of any hope for the future. On a personal level, he is also always incredibly generous with his time, something very few politicians, let alone former Presidential candidates, are.
Hence, I was very happy to ask Howie a few questions about the 2024 election, whether he plans to run again, what that process entails, whilst also discussing RCV and whether he would work with Andrew Yang’s Forward Party to promote the issue.
I began by asking Howie how he feels approaching the 2024 Presidential election. Or more specifically, whether he things a Biden-Trump rematch will happen, whether it is a good thing, and who he thinks will win. Howie explained that:
It looks like a Biden-Trump rematch now. It doesn’t look like Trump’s many criminal and civil cases will erode his base, while his opponents will divide the anti-Trump vote in the Republican primary.
Biden should win handily in the popular vote, like last time, but the distortions of the popular vote by the Electoral College will make it close, like last time.
This election may top the 2016 Clinton-Trump race for having the two most unpopular major party presidential candidates in history as measured by favorable/unfavorable ratings.
As this election may have the two most unpopular candidates in US history ever, it seems that (despite the current electoral system that makes it difficult for any third party) there would never be a greater demand for a third option. I think the Greens are a natural choice to meet this demand, as not only can they appeal to the progressive, would-be Bernie voter, but they could also appeal to otherwise generally disaffected voters, due to their falling outside of the ‘establishment’ and of course, those who are just worried about the environment. Hence, I asked Howie where the Green Party stands going into the election, and whether he plans on running again. Howie said:
The Green Party is facing the same problem as all the progressive movements in the U.S. The Sanders moment has passed, while Trump still looms. Progressives want to keep Trump out of office, so most will settle for Biden. The same dynamic prevails down ballot, too. The progressive movements are depressed. Biden isn’t delivering, but Trump would be a far greater disaster. That political climate makes it difficult for the Green Party in a non-proportional, winner-take-all election system.
I may run again. I will look at that over the summer. Pulling a campaign team together and paying them is like starting a business. I will have to see if I can do that.
The problems I addressed in 2020 have only gotten worse and I think my policy platform is as relevant as ever: the Ecosocialist Green New Deal to tackle the climate crisis, the Economic Bill of Rights to address growing inequality and persistent poverty, and Peace Policies to reverse the new nuclear arms race. Those were the three central themes of my 2020 campaign.
If I were to run in 2024, I would add a fourth theme: Inclusive Multi-Party Democracy, which would feature fair ballot access, ranked-choice voting for executive offices, and proportional ranked choice voting for legislative bodies, as well as hammer away on the voting rights and election protection laws the Democrats failed to enact when it was supposedly their top priority and they had the majority in both Houses of Congress.
Hearing what platform Howie would run on, makes me, and I’m sure many Americans, even more hungry for him to do so. But bouncing off Howie’s suggestion of adding RCV to his platform, I asked him for his thoughts towards Andrew Yang’s Forward Party, who are also campaigning for RCV. Ever since Yang announced his new party, I always thought they could work well with the Greens to promote issues like RCV, so it was interesting to ask Howie about this. He explained that:
RCV is good, but Yang’s Top-Five Primaries are bad. These nonpartisan primaries that are open to all candidates makes parties organized around a shared platform and grassroots organizing irrelevant. Without political parties and other civic organizations, the public is atomized and isolated from collective political debate and education in a political party and hence more vulnerable to centralized propaganda from the wealthy special interests that back their favored candidates. Without real political parties organizing around a platform, organized people can’t beat concentrated wealth.
That said, I am willing to work with the Forward Party on RCV, but not Top-Five Nonpartisan Primaries.
So, despite the disagreement regarding Top-Five Primaries, it is good to hear Howie would be willing to work with the Forward Party on RCV. I asked the Forward Party whether they would consider working with the Greens, however they failed to reply (and considering they follow me on Twitter so likely saw the message is somewhat concerning). I hope this is just down to missing the message (which could very well be the case) as opposed to signalling a lack of interest to work with the Greens. If they truly wish to further the cause of RCV, not working with the Greens on this issue (who have far great levels of ballot access) would be nonsensical on their part. I think this partnership and a Green-Forward coalition could really help strengthen American Democracy.
Nevertheless, to conclude, having always wondered how exactly one would go about running for President, I asked Howie what the process actually looks like (i.e., how one becomes the candidates and what campaigning then looks like). Howie said:
The process is each state party holds a vote of their members online, or in a state convention, or in a state-run primary in some states. Delegates are awarded to each candidate for the national convention to each candidate in proportion to their share of the vote in each state. Then the delegates vote on the nomination in a national convention.
The campaigning after the convention is primarily an effort to get media and social media coverage.
It was very interesting to gain Howie’s invaluable insight during this otherwise dark period in US politics. As I say, people like Howie give me hope for the future. I hope he runs in 2024, because I think his voice is important and a very valuable one in this otherwise dark political landscape. It was good to learn he is at least considering doing so. But even if he doesn’t, I wish him all the best, and thank him for his time. I think kindness is one of the most underrated traits and is something many politicians lack. Howie certainly doesn’t.
Whether Howie runs in 2024 or not, he will no doubt continue to inspire others to get involved and to fight for the change we need. The world needs more people like Howie. That’s for sure.
You can listen to Howie on the ‘Green Socialist Notes’ Podcast and follow him on Twitter.