For immediate release: Monday, August 18, 2014

All Volunteer Effort Puts Three Green-Rainbow Candidates on November Ballot

Three new names will appear statewide on the November 4 state election ballot following the delivery today of certified signature sheets to state offices in Boston, Fall River, and Springfield.   The signatures were collected by an all-volunteer team on behalf of three Green-Rainbow Party candidates running for Secretary, State Treasurer, and State Auditor.  Over 7200 signatures were certified, far more than the 5,000 required for ballot access.

The three candidates are Danny Factor of Acton for Secretary of the Commonwealth, Ian Jackson of Arlington for State Treasurer, and M K Merelice of Brookline for State Auditor.  The Green-Rainbow Party (which united the Rainbow Coalition Party and Massachusetts Green Party in 2003) is the Massachusetts affiliate of the Green Party of the U.S.

 “Today is a politically significant event,” noted Danny Factor.  “Three candidates stressing their commitment to social and environmental justice, accomplished a formidable petitioning task without hiring professional signature collectors the way candidates in the big parties often do.  Such volunteer empowerment is consistent with our pledge to refuse contributions from lobbyists or corporate officers who hire lobbyists.  Being independent from the big money influences lets us speak up for the needs of real people instead of pushing the agenda of Beacon Hill lobbyists.  We now begin a campaign in which we are going to be talking about an Economic Bill of Rights that includes the right of all people to healthy and affordable food, clean air and water, decent shelter, and comprehensive single-payer health care.”

Factor is a public-interest attorney, representing victims of domestic violence, low-income workers,  and other persons deprived of their rights. He serves on the Acton Commission on Disabilities.

Factor said that his goal in running for Secretary of the Commonwealth - the state office that oversees corporate law - would be to restore the purpose of a corporation to its original meaning of serving a public benefit.  "Over time our economy has seen the rise of huge corporations that exploit workers, shift taxes onto ordinary taxpayers, pollute our environment, buy the services of our politicians,  and then, in some cases, move their headquarters overseas to avoid paying taxes in America.  We need to promote different corporate behavior and to encourage the growth of locally-owned businesses that become integral parts of healthy communities."

Ian Jackson, candidate for State Treasurer, noted that “it’s very exciting to see the work of our signature volunteers come to fruition. We look forward to welcoming more volunteers to our campaign and to inviting the voters themselves to join our team for true democracy.  Working together we can help Massachusetts residents fulfill their dreams. We can create a Commonwealth for the common good and a public banking system that is too good to fail.”

Jackson has been a long time church Trustee in his home town of Arlington, has chaired its Social Concerns Committee, and is president of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Observance Committee of Arlington. A Baylor University graduate in computer science and business administration, he lived and worked in France in the 1980s and ‘90s,. later returning to Massachusetts and receiving a master’s degree in computer science from Northeastern University.

 M K Merelice, candidate for State Auditor said “what a pleasure it has been to travel to communities throughout our state and to see voters respond to our call for people-powered - not money-powered - politics in Massachusetts.  Our Commonwealth has an abundance of human and environmental resources, as well as financial resources, which the State Auditor can help ensure are being applied for the wellbeing of all people and our planet.”

Merelice is a former reporter and editor for The Christian Science Monitor and Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Putnam Investments. A 40-year resident of Brookline, she serves as a Brookline Town Meeting member and a member of its Green Caucus, as well as serving on the Selectmen’s Zoning Bylaw Committee. She participates on the boards of Brookline’s affordable housing CDC, the Brookline GreenSpace Alliance, and the Mass. Alliance Against Predatory Lending (which helps people save their homes against foreclosures).

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