Kevin Zeese
From dKosopedia
Categories: Green Party people | Maryland
Kevin Zeese is running a unique campaign for U.S. Senate in Maryland, bringing together three alternative political parties, the Populists, Libertarians and Greens. Zeese's Unity Campaign aims to be the first "fusion campaign" for federal office in Maryland history. Zeese is running on a reform platform for Democracy, Peace and Justice. He aims to replace the retiring Sen. Paul Sarbanes in the November 2006 election. The latest polling shows him at 4%. [1]
Originally, Zeese's nomination from three political parties meant that he would show up on three lines on the November ballot. However, the Maryland state legislature passed "emergency legislation" (a type of legislation meant to immediately protect the people of Maryland against harm) barring any candidate from appearing on more than one ballot line. [2]
Zeese is a graduate of the George Washington University Law School. He began his political career as Chief Counsel for NORML, the National Organization to Reform the Marijuana Laws in 1980, and served as NORML's Executive Director from 1983-1986.
He's since been involved in such drug policy reform efforts as the Drug Policy Foundation ( renamed Drug Policy Alliance), the Harm Reduction Coalition (both of which he co-founded), Baltimore Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke's Mayor's Working Group on Drug Policy Reform, and the Journey for Justice, a march from Tulia, Texas to the Texas State House on behalf of 43 mostly black Tulia residents caught up in a fabricated drug sting, and convicted on the word of a single professional informant who'd been dropped by other law enforcement agencies after a history of misconduct. Zeese serves as president of Common Sense for Drug Policy another group he co-founded. See www.csdp.org. Common Sense published "Drug War Facts" see www.DrugWarFacts.org. Zeese was a founder of the Alliance of Reform Organizations (ARO), a coalition of organizations working to end the failed war on drugs and put in place a policy that has at its center public health strategies rather than law enforcement strategies.
Zeese was a co-founder of the Campaign for Verifiable Voting in Maryland. See TrueVoteMD.org. And is a founding member of VoteTrustUSA.org. Both organizations working to ensure voters can verify their votes with regard to electronic voting machines. TrueVoteMD works to improve voting in Maryland. VoteTrustUSA brings together electronic voting reform activists from across the country.
In 2004, Zeese became spokesman for Ralph Nader's Presidential campaign. He served as press secretary to the Nader-Camejo Campaign. Zeese also worked on the gubernatorial campaign of Green Party candidate Peter Camejo in California and on the Maryland House of Delegates campaign of Linda Schade, who also ran as a Green.
In 2005, Zeese became a director of the 'Stop the War' campaign of Democracy Rising. See DemocracyRising.US. He is also a co-founder of VotersForPeace.US
Zeese has authored several books and many articles. He's been published in mainstream media outlets like USA Today, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post as well as on web outlets like Common Dreams, AlterNet, Counterpunch, Dissident Voice, Raw Story and Z Magazine.
email: KZeese@DemocracyRising.US
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