Jill Stein, the Green Party's candidate in the US presidential election, has little chance of being elected. However, the themes and measures she presents are appealing to an increasing number of Democratic voters, which could lead to Kamala Harris' defeat.
Her name is making the American Democratic Party tremble. In fact, Hillary Clinton blamed her for her loss at the 2016 election. After two failed attempts in 2012 and 2016, Jill Stein has decided to try again in the 2024 presidential election. This time, she could win over many voters disappointed by Kamala Harris.
Jill Stein has been the candidate of the US Green Party for over 20 years. A Harvard graduate and Boston physician for 25 years, she entered politics in 2002 and ran for governor of Massachusetts. She finished third, with 3.5% of the vote. In 2004, she ran for representative of the 9th district of the same state. She came second, behind the Democratic candidate, but ahead of the Republican candidate.
After several years as a local elected official in her home town of Lexington, Massachusetts, she ran for governor again in 2010. She received just 1.4% of the vote.
Despite several electoral setbacks, she ran in the 2012 US presidential election with her “Green New Deal:” a series of flagship measures combining environmental protection, improvements to the public social security system, job creation and higher taxation of corporations and wealthier households. She won only 0.36% of the vote.
Undeterred, Jill Stein tried her luck again in 2016, promoting the same themes. This time, she obtained 0.98% of the total vote. In some states, her score more or less matched the gap between Hillary Clinton's and Donald Trump's, convincing the Democratic Party that she had cost them the election.
In late 2017, the US Senate Intelligence Committee launched an investigation against Jill Stein, accusing her of conspiring with Russia to influence the outcome of the 2016 election. She is accused of having attended a dinner with Vladimir Putin in 2015 and of speaking well of Julian Assange, who had leaked numerous Democratic Party emails at the time. She was eventually cleared, after denouncing “slander” and “crazy ideas.”
For the 2024 presidential election, Jill Stein is returning to her favorite themes: environmental protection and social justice. Her running mate is Butch Ware, a historian specializing in colonization, revolutions and genocide. If elected, she also promises to put an end to the United States' unconditional support for Israel, and to put pressure on the Hebrew state to end its war in Gaza and Lebanon.
Although she has little chance of becoming president, Jill Stein is putting forward themes that appeal to an ever-growing share of left-wing, Democratic and progressive voters who would traditionally have voted for Kamala Harris, but who are increasingly disappointed by her overly timid stance on the environment, or, on the contrary, her overly enthusiastic support for Israel.
Created in 2024 in the state of Michigan, the “Uncommitted” movement, for example, brings together hundreds of thousands of voters who, because of the Democrats' pro-Israel stance, are calling for them not to vote for them and to choose a “third party” candidate like Jill Stein. Given Harris' and Trump's extremely close scores, such movements could give either of them the upper hand.
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