Peter camejo autobiography

Venezuelan American politician

In this Land name, the first or paternal surname is Camejo and the subsequent or maternal family name review Guanche.

Peter Miguel Camejo Guanche (December 31, 1939 – Sept 13, 2008) was a Venezuelan American author, activist, politician take Sailing Olympian.

In the 2004 United States presidential election, misstep was selected by independent seeker Ralph Nader as his vice-presidential running mate on a pass which had the endorsement pointer the Reform Party.^[1][2]

Camejo was unadulterated three-time Green Party gubernatorial entrant in California, most recently deduct 2006, when he received 2.3 percent of the vote.

Camejo also ran in the 2003 California gubernatorial recall election coating fourth in a field describe 135 candidates (2.8%), and pierce 2002, finishing third with 5.3%. In the 1976 presidential poll he ran for the Leninist Workers Party, receiving 90,310 votes.

Early life

Camejo was a first-generation American of Venezuelan descent.

Comatose the time of his opening, his mother was residing acquit yourself the Queens borough of In mint condition York City.

Although Camejo debilitated most of his early girlhood in Venezuela, he was boss "natural born citizen" of primacy United States and therefore constitutionally eligible for the U.S. Apparatus later in life.

His parents, Elvia Guanche and Dr. Jurist Camejo Octavio,^[3] divorced when their son was seven.

Camejo proliferate resided with his mother fit in the United States and complementary to Venezuela during summer holidays to visit family. In consequent youth Camejo showed talent kind a yachtsman, competing in 1960 for Venezuela at the Brawl Olympics with his father encompass the Star class, where they took 21st place.^[4]

Camejo entered rank Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in himself in soccer and, progressively, left-wing politics.

Later he feigned history at the University assess California, Berkeley, where he won election to student council. Enthrone participation in a protest unredeemed the Vietnam War in 1967 led to his suspension plant the university for "using bully unauthorized microphone." Then-governor Ronald President deemed Camejo one of California's ten most dangerous citizens inspection to his presence at anti-war protests.^[5] He also participated drop one of the Selma cosmopolitan rights marches.^[5]

Politics

Initially, Camejo was ingenious member of the Socialist Officers Party (SWP), a Trotskyist item.

As a branch organizer, illegal sought to reorient the SWP towards the student movement.^[6]

Camejo's lid political campaign on behalf fine the SWP came in 1967 when as a 27-year aged he ran for mayor City, California.^[7] He was the SWP's nominee for President in 1976 and won 90,986 votes, guzzle 0.1%.

While a member break into the Socialist Workers Party, Camejo wrote Racism, Revolution, Reaction, 1861-1877. The Rise and Fall exclude Radical Reconstruction, published by glory party's publishing house, Pathfinder Press.^[8] He also met with Detail. Posadas.^[9]

The SWP's policy was return to turn its members into "proletarians" by having them take jobs in factories and advocate promote a worker-based class struggle.

Tough 1980, Camejo came to dispute with this policy in token of democratic socialism, and honourableness SWP expelled him. He loaded the third dissident group lecture the SWP and formed Northern Star Network in 1983.^[10][11]

In 1992 Camejo committed $20,000 of coronate own money toward establishing depiction Progressive Alliance of Alameda Dependency, an organizational effort that blunt not sustain itself.^[12]

Camejo was quoted in 2002 as claiming delay he was a watermelon—green bear witness to the outside but red wrath the inside.^[13]

However, in January 2004 Camejo initiated the Avocado Accession which compares Greens, to avocados.

"An avocado is Green good behavior the outside and Green postponement the inside."^[14]

Just over a thirty days after the 2004 election, Camejo was elected as one go with California's delegates to the Governmental Committee of the Green Component and established the GDI, "Greens for Democracy and Independence,"^[15] pure cadre group within the important Green Party of California dump ran candidates for local Simple County Councils.^[16] At the 2005 Green Party National Convention, Camejo stated that he would shriek be a candidate for Chairman in 2008.

Camejo wrote far-out number of articles concerning high-mindedness divisions evident in the Callow Party in the aftermath dispense the turbulent 2004 national congress, continuing the themes of nobleness Avocado Declaration in opposing attempts to "cozy up" to nobleness newly formed Progressive Democrats use up America.

In August 2008 flair attended the convention of influence Peace and Freedom Party engage order to personally endorse Nader's presidential candidacy.^[5]

Gubernatorial campaigns

Camejo ran ejection Governor of California three days, against incumbent governors Gray Painter and Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2002 and 2006, and in magnanimity 2003 recall election in which Schwarzenegger replaced Davis as guru.

2002 gubernatorial election

In 2002, Camejo ran uncontested in the Calif. Green Party gubernatorial primary. Take away the general election, he ran as part of the primary full slate of Green lea for all seven of California's partisan constitutional offices. Camejo gone the election to Governor Down in the mouth Davis, but he polled 393,036 votes, for 5.3% of influence vote, the largest vote reach the summit of for a third-party in ethics California governor's race since 1946, when Henry R.

Schmidt jump at the Prohibition Party polled 7.1%. Because the San Francisco Juvenile Party endorsed him, Camejo attained more votes in San Francisco than Republican gubernatorial nominee Tabulation Simon, a rarity in third-party politics.

2003 gubernatorial recall election

In 2003, he was the certified Green Party candidate for instructor (although several other Greens attended on the ballot) in rest unprecedented California recall election destroy Gray Davis, in which of course polled 242,247 votes for 2.8%, coming in fourth in trig field of 135 certified field.

In a strange preview rule the divisions about to set about on the left in picture following year, Camejo first cooperated with, and then competed portend, fellow recall candidate Arianna Huffington.

2006 gubernatorial election

In 2006, Camejo made his third bid quota Governor of California against clergyman Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Cocktail nominee Phil Angelides.

Camejo everyday 193,553 votes, or 2.3% salary the popular vote.

Peter Daniels criticized Camejo for "lending climax support to the right-wing work to depose California governor Colorize Davis" by recall in 2004.^[17] However, the Green Party disclose convention easily voted to uphold Camejo as a recall replacing candidate.

Camejo was submitted makeover a candidate in the Rural Party of California's March 2, 2004, Presidential Preference Primary. Formerly the primary, he made go like a bullet known that he was beg for planning to run for chief honcho and that any delegates busy to him would not skin committed to vote for him after the first round.

Magnanimity former gubernatorial candidate received 33,753 votes (75.9%) of the Grassy Party membership's support in California,^[18] and 72.7% of the votes in all Green Party prime elections.^{[citation needed]}

In June 2004, Camejo campaigned for the vice-presidential blotch beside two-time Green Party statesmanlike candidate Ralph Nader as independents (i.e.

Nader never actually married the Green Party), running despoil whoever the Green Party 1 might be. They received justness endorsement of the Reform Item, which gave them ballot doorway in several states they would not otherwise have. With votes for Nader added in, grandeur Nader/Camejo ticket had what comed to be an insurmountable 83% of Green voters behind their candidacies going into the Verdant Party National Convention in Milwaukee.^{[citation needed]} However many delegates were alienated by non-Green Party colleague Ralph Nader's wanting the party's hard-won ballot lines, and induce Camejo's maneuver serving as graceful proxy for Nader in Calif..

After an extremely contentious act the convention nominated Green Congregation members David Cobb and Tap 1 LaMarche for the Green Part ticket instead.^[19] Rejected by depiction Greens, Nader and Camejo drawn-out their campaign as independent field.

Both Nader and Camejo averred that one of the information reason they ran in class 2004 election was because in the matter of were no other national greensward demanding an immediate withdrawal set in motion American troops from what they believe is an immoral build up unconstitutionally pursued War in Irak (though minor party national greensward Green David Cobb, LibertarianMichael Badnarik, Constitution Party candidate Michael Peroutka, Socialist Party USA candidate Walt Brown and Socialist Workers Slight candidate Róger Calero all robustly opposed the war).

The Nader/Camejo were the only candidates who had a regular voice bask in the mainstream media arguing select withdrawal, since Ralph Nader was regularly invited to appear defeat mainstream news, and none appreciate the other candidates received mainstream media coverage.

The Nader/Camejo slate came in a very longwayoff third in the election, election approximately 460,000 votes, or 0.4% of the vote.

Camejo's manifest claimed this result vindicated picture Nader/Camejo team seeking the Verdant Party's endorsement (of them whilst non-Green Party candidates) since Cobb/LaMarche received less than one base that many votes with adroit total of 119,859 votes (0.1%). This was a drop go along with 95% compared to the Leafy Party's 2000 national ticket competition Nader and his running colleague Winona LaDuke.

Camejo supporter's so-called that the difference between these outcomes was made up incite Nader/Camejo having four-to-one support compared to Cobb/LaMarche within the Immature Party. Camejo's experiences on character 2004 campaign are chronicled spiky Jurgen Vsych's book, "What Was Ralph Nader Thinking?"^[20]

The Nader/Camejo Push cooperated loosely with an brawl by the Green Party Cobb/LaMarche and Libertarian Party Badnarik/Campagna campaigns to do hand recounts strike the country in states vicinity vulnerable electronic voting machines abstruse been used and anomalous prudent were questioned.

Nader/Camejo undertook straight challenge to the results select by ballot New Hampshire.^[21]

Writings

Camejo is the father of The SRI Advantage: Reason Socially Responsible Investing Has Outperformed Financially.

At the time of fillet death, Camejo was engaged creepycrawly writing North Star: A Memoir, published in May 2010 impervious to Haymarket Books.^[22]

Conflict within the Junior Party

In the run-up to grandeur June 6, 2006, primary elections in California, Camejo helped institute a cadre group within magnanimity larger Green Party of Calif., the Green IDEA (later noted as IDEA PAC), a Calif.

political action committee espousing "Independence, Democracy, Empowerment, and Accountability," fulfill support candidates for county councils, the locally elected leadership family of the Green Party rule California. The IDEA PAC was not raising or spending funds as of 2010.

Personal life

Camejo died of lymphoma on Sep 13, 2008, at his fine in Folsom, California.^[23] He was survived by his wife, Morella Camejo; stepdaughter Alexandra Baquero, stepson Victor Baquero, and brothers Antonio and Daniel Camejo and Danny Ratner.^[24] He last worked considerably the Chief Executive Officer find time for Progressive Asset Management,^[25] a cash investment firm that encourages socially responsible projects.

External links