Martha Abbott, the chairwoman of the Progressive Party of Vermont, is both running for the office of Governor and planning to drop out. The Burlington Free Press has the story.
Martha Abbott is chairwoman of the Vermont Progressive Party and also its gubernatorial candidate — but she plans to hold the second title only until the Aug. 24 primary election.Once she has prevented anyone else from winning the party’s gubernatorial slot on the general election ballot, she said. “I am definitely withdrawing.”
Why?
The Progressive Party doesn’t want to dilute opposition to the Republican gubernatorial candidate, Abbott explained.
“We don’t want to see Brian Dubie become governor,” Abbott said. While neither she nor the Progressive Party will endorse the Democratic nominee once the winner of the five-say primary is decided on Aug. 24, she said, “our cooperation is by not running in that race.”
The Progressive Party of Vermont filed a full slate of statewide candidates in May, but announced at the time that many of them might withdraw from their races.
The more and more the Progressive Party of Vermont aligns itself with the Dems, the more and more it opens the door for the Vermont secessionists to become a viable party. Unlike the Progressives, they’re not trying to play at the margins of the Left. They have a real cause to fight for.
Michael Cavlan RN // Jun 27, 2010:
“Sounds like Pat-Don’t Vote For Me-LaMarche all over again ……” [Lake: ditto]
Michael, isn’t your national New Progressive Party relying on Vermont?
Dear God
Sounds like Pat-Don’t Vote For Me-LaMarche all over again.
The Progs of Vermont can expect their numbers to go into the toilet.
Skyler, when you do that you walk a fine line between being productive and counterproductive. The Populists of the late 19th century would have agreed with you, but because of that their party (one of the more successful in American history) fell apart when they cross-endorsed the “ideologically similar” Democrat in 1896. And there are many other times that third parties have compromised away their independence and effectiveness.
Green history: Ease off on close races of Dems and GOP (Cobb) and ‘Don’t vote for me’ (LaMarshe) …….. ah the road to success —-not!
Lib history: LP as the one and only 21st Century American Peace Party (Tommy Knapp and George Phillies) …….. ah the road to success —– not!
American history: Collusion of the NATIONAL Progressive Party and the 1892 Democrats. Oops!
Ross, yes it has happened before. Progressives for Obama/Tom Hayden for example. Sound familiar?
George, Good one!
Skyler, slummimg in IPR again, are we?
Don’t flatter yourself you little democratic piece of crap. I very rarely mention you & not in a long time. Maybe your pinger goes off whenever ANYBODY mentions you in IPR, not just me. & I don’t see that happening very often. No, you are not an item here. Unfortunately, W.A.R. is.
Thanks for the unsolicited advice for third parties to go ahead & shoot themselves in the foot every time they might step on the dems or reps toes. Unfortunately they aren’t listening to me so they will probably continue to go around shooting themselves in the foot, regardless of what you or I say.
@5 This will undoubtedly be of some interest to the Green and Constitution Party folks, but has no consequence for real libertarians.
I’d say this is a very prescient decision by Martha Abbott. Don’t get me wrong, Third Parties can have valuable presences on ballots. But in years like this year, the elections become idealogical battles over some isssues which really will define public policy now and in the future.
Saying this here probably won’t make me any friends, but when a third party is ideologically similar to one of the two-parties in an election that will likely be as close as this one, it’s the duty of that third party, from a public policy perspective, to forward their platform by not opposing the party which could theoretically be an idealogical and political ally.
And Robert Milnes, my google alerts ping every time you mention me here. I’d like to be clear on one point; Senator Mike Gravel is no longer a client of mine, nor has he been a client since his loss at the Libertarian National Convention in May of 2008. I’m in no place to comment on any of his activity, nor do I serve as a spokesman of any sort for the Senator. He’s a friend of mine of course, but we have not had a business relationship in years.
Hm, maybe this has happened before, but from where I’m standing it looks like the Progs are getting uncomfortably close with the Democrats.
PLAS is passe… PSLA is the new way!
Morons. Because they don’t understand what they are doing, they withdraw, drop out, etc. Instead of entire slate winning! Morons!
All could get elected with PLAS.