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An American Original
The Progressive Party is built on three major principles:
- The People should run the government–not big money.
- Business should not be allowed to do harm.
- If no one else will help the poor, the government should.
These ideals have been part of our party since 1912, and all other parts of our platform stem from them.
"This country will not be a permanently good
place for any of us to live in unless we make it a reasonably good
place for all of us to live in."
Theodore Roosevelt
Chicago, IL, June 17, 1912
Progressive Party of Washington
Join us at our next meeting!
Our next Meet and Greet will take place at the Rusty
Pelican Restaurant, at 1924 N. 45th St. in Wallingford (a Seattle Neighborhood) on the last
Friday of the month at 7:00PM (except December). We need your help, your ideas, and your
energy!  Turn left from interstate on 45th, going uphill. The Rusty Pelican is on the right.. For a better map
We
need activist members who want to make a change for better local
government by gearing the government to the people. And people who thought there was nothing they could do to change things. We welcome those
who have been activists in their own neighborhood, schools, parks, or
working for social justice at the city, county and state levels,
including environmental justice. as well as those who wanted to, but didn't know what they could do. You might also enjoy joining our email
list, a place of often lively discussion. If you do want to join us,
please read membership,
decide what type of member you want to be, then email us for more
information or snail mail us your application.
A word about this party
We are an original party. We have our own history, our own platform. Want to be a Progressive? Join the Progressive Party.
We have some help for those who are just now getting started with all of this. We call it, "Do it Yourself Democracy©". Here are some links to get you started: Writing to the PressWe really encourage you to express your views. Here is a guide to help you figure out who runs what in government Who Runs What
1. Another New Primary
Sigh, here's yet another new primay. If SB 5681 passes, only parties getting 1% or more in a presidential race can be major parties. This leaves out all state parties, so if we had 90% in all our races, we would not qualify, since we do not run presidential candidates.minor party and independent candidates don't have to gather a ton of extra signatures to get on the ballot unless they want to run for President of the United States, or Vice-President. But we do have to gather 100 valid (200) signatures in the dead of winter to run any candidates at all. With nthe current situation, no one can tell which candidates are actually from which party. Candidates can claim to be from any party even if they have never attended a meeting and do not support any of the party platform. The second problem is that only two candidates will go on to the final ballot, no matter what party they claim to be from. Therefore, the two best funded candidates will always win. We obviously need a better way to do this. We support these changes:
2. Instant Runoff Voting
- to cut out spoiling and mudslinging.
3. Clean Money Campaigns
- to stop big money from pulling candidate's strings.
We also are working with other third parties for the right of the voter to have a choice.
Heidi Durham, Freedom Socialist Party (seated), with Linde Knighton, Progressive Party and Sarah Luthens, Green Party
Statement of Principles
Jobs and Labor Rights: People cannot survive without jobs which
pay enough to enable the laborer to live comfortably. Workers need a safe
work environment, the right to bargain collectively and to organize.
Trust Busting: No corporation has the right to bypass the law,
endanger the people, wreck the environment or refuse to pay their fair
share of taxes.
Public Health: Full funding for health care for everyone is the
ideal. A return to the original version of the Basic Health Care Law is a
good first step. Alternative health care methods should be treated with
respect.
Your Vote Should Count: Any method of vote counting which has
been shown to be open to fraud should not be used. Voters should be able
to verify their votes with a paper ballot. Instant runoff voting should be
made the law to enable the people to choose their own candidates in the
freest and most effective way. Any candidate for public office, regardless of party
affiliation has a right to equal ballot access, so the voters have a choice
The Bill of Rights: The rights enumerated in the Bill of Rights
should not be abridged at any level of government.
Respect for All of Humanity: Human rights and dignity should be
respected. Schools should teach history as it happened and include all
participants in the events that shaped our world. Laws should be evenly
enforced.
People Before Money: Politicians are there to serve the people,
not big donors. Clean money laws should be passed and enforced
immediately. All parties and Independent candidates should be rewarded for running
clean money campaigns
Problem Solving Without Force: Children and adults need to learn
to solve problems without using force. This does not preclude
self-defense.
Conservation: We need to be smart about how we use our
resources–working first with renewable resources produced locally. The use
of poisons which enter our waterways, water table, air and soil should be
sharply reduced. Recycling is to be encouraged and overuse of limited
resources to be discouraged.
Kara Ceriello expresses herself at Notanumber Gifts and Cards
We can provide a speaker for your school or group in King and Pierce Counties with a minimum of 1 week notice. Many of our speakers choose public transportation, so please provide bus route information for King County.
We are able to speak on 3rd parties in American politics, The Progressive Movement, and the History of the Progressive Party from 1912 to current times. We can also discuss our take on current political issues.
TO contact us for a speaker in King County, please email Linde Knighton
and for Pierce County, please email Larry Pratt Please let us know what topics you want covered, format of the speech, time allowed and directions to the room.
Internships
If you need a place to intern for a class, The Progressive Party can provide several hours on political organizing and field work. campaigning and fundraising in King and Pierce Counties please email Linde Knighton Want to do something to make a difference right now? Check the icons below.
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Who Are We?
The Progressive Party of Washington is a revival of the original
Bullmoose Party of 1912. The Party did very well in both the United States and Washington. Check our
History.
In 2003, a few friends started a movement to revive the party in
Washington as a state party. Getting help from the Vermont Progressive
Party on how to start, we did all the legal work to get the party back
in Washington for the 1st time since Aprox. 1960. We are primarily a
political party, intending to run candidates, and endorse various
initiatives (After all, initiatives were originally our idea) and
improve the lives of the average Washingtonian.
Christal Wood, one of our members did an interview on Washington DC voting rights. Think we have problems? Voting Rights
Some of the things we want to support are:
Human Rights
Equality in well-being
Police Reform
Bill of Rights emphasis and defense
Equality in education (includes 2 years of free post secondary
education, also to include vocational programs)
Children's rights
Respect for and enforcement of UN principles
Full reproductive rights for women, while working to get rid of
the social conditions that sometimes force people to make a choice
they would not have ordinarily made.
Free associative marriage rights for all over 18
Election Reform/Campaign Finance Reform
Ecology: respect for and conservation of the earth and its living
systems.
Pure food and drug
Genetic labelling/right-to-know
Focus on alternate fuels and energy
Encourage small farms, small businesses
Economic Well-Being
Living Wage Amendment
Livable housing for all
Universal health care
Food for all
Insurance reform
Tax Reform
Return tax rates for wealthy and corporations to what they
were 50 years ago.
Heavy taxes on extraction and polluting industries (includes
logging)
Special Improvements taxes
Focus on Job Training and Creation


Progressives are talking about:
JOBS
Most jobs in Washington are created through small, local businesses. We
are working on a campaign to get ordinary people to spend their
hard-earned dollars in local businesses so they will not be replaced by
Wall Mart. We are also talking about the need for living wage jobs,
expecially in businesses with contracts through state and local
governments.
TAXES
An income tax on people making $100,000 a year or more would enable the
state to fix Basic Health Care and other programs that suffered under the
recent tax cuts.
check
out the David Horsey cartoon. The $64 Billion in tax cuts for mega
businesses are a drain for our state tax dollars. Very few jobs were
created, at a very high price per job.
Tax
Breaks
Election Reform
We now have the Modified Montana Primary, a confusing way for the
independent and minority party voters to foot the tax bill for the
Majority parties' primaries.
New
Primary
If you are unhappy with the new Primary, you are not alone. Please
check out Instant Runoff Voting. This would be a solution to the
Primary blues. We might even save some money! (about a million and a
half dollars each year.) IRV Initiative
Ballot Access
Why did our party have a majority
in the state legislature in 1913, and large numbers of candidates from
the Populist, Peoples and other 3rd parties do very well until the
1930s?
Read about Ballot Access in these two fine essays by Libertarian
Richard Winger.
What Are Ballots for?
BALLOT ACCESS: A Formidable Barrier to Fair Participation
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Here are some fun and useful links.
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