New Bedford Standard Times
New Bedford, Massachusetts
November 1, 2006

OUR VIEW: Jill Stein advocates for voters

We recognize that Jill Stein, the Green-Rainbow Party candidate for Secretary of State, is a long shot to unseat Democratic incumbent William Galvin.

But our endorsement of the physician and open government advocate from Lexington and your vote for her will send an important message. The voters need an activist secretary of state who will open up government on Beacon Hill.

Dr. Stein has pledged to bring back Clean Elections or another type of election reform. The Clean Elections ballot item was approved by the voters, but killed by the Legislature in 2003. It was designed to allow some public financing of elections in an effort to increase the number of contested races.

Dr. Stein also wants to use the secretary of state position to push for reforms of the Open Meeting Law and Public Documents Law. She wants the Open Meeting Law to apply to the Legislature, which is now exempt. She points out that many of the state's biggest political decisions go on in closed door meetings away from public view.

Complicated hundred-page bills such as the health care insurance bill are too often released from closed sessions in the 11th hour, giving the public no time for thoughtful review. This leads to problems like the fact the new health care law does not cover a large number of young people and may not provide adequate insurance for many others.

Dr. Stein also believes Massachusetts should be a leader in providing more accessible information about the influence of money in politics. She has vowed to improve access to information on lobbyist spending. She notes that Wisconsin has a user-friendly online system to learn about lobbyists, what bills they are working on and who is paying them what amount. As secretary of state in charge of overseeing lobbyists, she would improve the current lobbyist information system.

Dr. Stein is also critical of how long it has taken the current secretary of state to implement parts of the 2002 Help America Vote Act. The act required that handicapped people be able to vote on their own at this upcoming election. Secretary Galvin has put in place voting equipment for the disabled in only 28 of 351 communities. It simply wasn't a priority. A vote for Jill Stein is a statement that more must be done to increase voter participation and make voting accessible for all.