David Cobb (activist)

Last updated
David Cobb
David Cobb at Oct 2016 Berkeley rally for Jill Stein - 1 (cropped).jpg
Born
David Keith Cobb

San Leon, Texas, U.S.
Alma mater University of Houston
Occupations
  • Activist
  • attorney
  • campaign director
Organization Move to Amend
Political party

David Keith Cobb is an American political activist who was the Green Party presidential candidate for the 2004 election. Cobb later became the campaign manager for fellow Green Jill Stein for her presidential run in 2016.

Contents

2004 presidential campaign

Cobb campaigning for President in Wisconsin in September 2004 David Cobb on fire.jpg
Cobb campaigning for President in Wisconsin in September 2004

With the announcement in late December 2003 that Nader would not seek the Green Party nomination for president in 2004, Cobb became a front-runner for the nomination. On January 13, 2004, David Cobb won the first Green primary in the nation, that of the District of Columbia, beating local activist Sheila Bilyeu and several write-in candidates and gaining an early lead in the nomination scramble.

Nader eventually announced an independent campaign for president and sought the endorsement of the Green Party and other minor parties; his supporters continued to push for a Nader victory in the various Green Party primary elections in states across the country. Shortly before, [1] the Green Party presidential nominating convention, held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in June 2004, Nader selected Green Party member Peter Camejo as his running mate. On June 26, on the second ballot, the convention selected Cobb as the Green presidential candidate – a process rocked by controversy as Nader had won the vast majority of actual Green Party votes in nearly all state primary elections (Cobb received only 12.2 percent support). The party also nominated Pat LaMarche as its candidate for vice-president.

Cobb stated his intention to run a campaign focused on building the Green Party and pursuing a "strategic states" or "smart states" strategy which would take into account the wishes of Greens in each state, and which otherwise would focus on states that traditionally are "safely" won by the Democratic candidate, or "safely" won by the Republican candidate, with a large margin of victory. Such so-called "safe states" are also referred to in campaign literature as "neglected states" because the Democratic and Republican candidates traditionally put most of their campaign energy into more competitive "swing states." Cobb's campaign said that each state's campaign would aim to follow the wishes expressed by local Greens. While some of Cobb's supporters urged swing state residents to vote for Democrat John Kerry in order to stop the re-election of President George W. Bush, other Cobb supporters encouraged votes for Cobb and LaMarche everywhere. The candidates themselves used the phrase "vote your conscience," campaigning both in swing states such as Wisconsin and safe states such as California.

On October 8, 2004, Cobb was arrested in an act of civil disobedience, breaking a police line while protesting the Commission on Presidential Debates for excluding third-party candidates from the nationally televised debates in St. Louis, Missouri. [2] Also arrested was Libertarian candidate Michael Badnarik. [2]

In the November 2004 presidential election, Cobb placed sixth in the popular vote total nationwide, earning over 119,859 votes (0.10 percent), but received no electoral votes. This represented a decline of over 90 percent support compared to the votes garnered by Nader.

Post-election activities

Since running for president, Cobb has become a member of the Board of Directors for the Green Institute, [3] and of the Sierra Club's national Corporate Accountability Committee, [4] a Fellow with the Liberty Tree Foundation for the Democratic Revolution, [5] on the Steering Committee of Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County, [6] along with being the group's campaigns director, [7] and is a Principal with Program on Corporations, Law, and Democracy (POCLAD). [8]

Cobb facilitated the founding convention of the Green Party of Louisiana during a two-day convention which took place on August 31 and September 1, 2002, in New Orleans. [9]

Cobb co-founded Cooperation Humboldt. [10]

Cobb was the campaign manager for Green candidate Jill Stein in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. [11]

Election history

Texas general election, 2002: Texas Attorney General [12]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Republican Greg Abbott 2,542,18456.72
Democratic Kirk Watson 1,841,35941.08
Libertarian Jon Roland 56,8801.26
Green David Keith Cobb41,5600.92
Turnout 4,481,983
Republican hold

See also

Related Research Articles

The Green Party of the United States (GPUS) is a federation of Green state political parties in the United States. The party promotes green politics, specifically environmentalism; nonviolence; social justice; participatory democracy; grassroots democracy; anti-war; anti-racism; libertarian socialism and eco-socialism. On the political spectrum, the party is generally seen as left-wing. As of 2022, it is the fourth-largest political party in the United States by voter registration, behind the Libertarian Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Camejo</span> Venezuelan American politician

Peter Miguel Camejo Guanche was a Venezuelan American author, activist, politician and Sailing Olympian. In the 2004 United States presidential election, he was selected by independent candidate Ralph Nader as his vice-presidential running mate on a ticket which had the endorsement of the Reform Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Party of Oklahoma</span> Political party in the United States

The Green Party of Oklahoma is a political party in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It was formed in 2002 through a gradual coalition of various state green groups and received its accreditation from the Green Party of the United States (GPUS) in May 2005. Its stated aims are a commitment to environmentalism, non-violence, social justice, and grassroots democracy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jill Stein</span> American politician and physician

Jill Ellen Stein is an American physician, activist, and former political candidate. She was the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States in the 2012 and 2016 elections and the Green-Rainbow Party's candidate for governor of Massachusetts in 2002 and 2010.

The Green National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Green Party of the United States (GPUS). Though the Green National Committee (GNC) meets annually in a "national meeting", the convention is convened by the GNC once every four years in order to nominate an official candidate in the upcoming U.S. presidential election, and to officially adopt the party platform and rules for the election cycle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green-Rainbow Party</span> Massachusetts political party

The Green-Rainbow Party (GRP) is the Massachusetts affiliate of the Green Party of the United States and a political designation in Massachusetts officially recognized by the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Up until 2020, it was an officially recognized political party in Massachusetts, losing that status as the result of vote tallies in the November 2020 election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Party of California</span> California affiliate of the Green Party

The Green Party of California (GPCA) is a California political party. The party is led by a coordinating committee, and decisions are ultimately made by general assemblies. The GPCA is affiliated with the Green Party of the United States (GPUS).

The Green Party of the United States originated in 1984 when 62 people from the U.S. gathered in St. Paul, Minnesota and founded the first national Green organization - the Committees of Correspondence. The Green Party of the U.S. has gone through several evolutions, from debating theory and praxis in the 1980s, to starting state parties in the 1990s, to the founding of a national political party in the 2000s.

The Green Party of Rhode Island (GPRI) is one of the oldest active Green parties in the United States. The party was founded on March 6, 1992, at a meeting of 40 activists from Rhode Island. In November 1996, GPRI was one of 12 founding parties in the Association of State Green Parties, renamed the Green Party of the United States in 2001. Several Rhode Island party leaders have served as officers of the national Green Party. The party's candidates have run for municipal councils in several cities and towns, such as running for Mayor of Providence, the State Senate and the State House of Representatives, U.S. Congress, and for Lieutenant governor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2004 Green National Convention</span>

The 2004 Green National Convention was held at the Hyatt Regency and the Midwest Airlines Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on June 23–28, 2004 to nominate the Green Party's candidates for president and vice president.

The 2008 Green National Convention took place on July 10–14, 2008 in Chicago, Illinois at the Palmer House Hilton and Symphony Center. This served as both the venue for the National Convention and the Annual Meeting of the Green Party of the United States.

The 2004 presidential campaign of David Cobb, a Texas attorney, was Cobb's second overall election campaign, having run for State Attorney General in 2002. Prior to seeking the presidential nomination of the Green Party of the United States, he was involved with Ralph Nader's campaign in 2000 and was an activist for the Green Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cynthia McKinney 2008 presidential campaign</span> Political campaign for United States presidency

The 2008 presidential campaign of Cynthia McKinney, member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 11th district (1993–97) and 4th district, began on December 16, 2007, as a candidate for the Green Party presidential nomination via YouTube. She and her running mate Rosa Clemente accepted the Green Party's presidential nomination July 12, 2008 at the 2008 Green National Convention. Her campaign focused on issues such as racial profiling, September 11, 2001 attacks, and the Green Party's 10 key values. She also supported statehood for the District of Columbia, slavery reparations, electoral reforms including instant runoff voting, and calls for abolishing the death penalty and the War on Drugs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jill Stein 2012 presidential campaign</span> Political campaign for United States presidency

The 2012 presidential campaign of Jill Stein was announced on October 24, 2011. Jill Stein, a physician from Massachusetts, gave indication in August 2011 that she was considering running for President of the United States with the Green Party in the 2012 national election. She wrote in a published questionnaire that she had been asked to run by a number of Green activists and felt compelled to consider the possibility after the U.S. debt-ceiling crisis which she called "the President's astounding attack on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid – a betrayal of the public interest."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Green National Convention</span> United States political convention

The 2016 Green National Convention, in which delegates of the Green Party of the United States chose the party's nominees for president and vice president in the national election, was held August 4–7, 2016 in Houston, Texas. In August 2015, Houston was chosen over a competing proposal from Toledo, Ohio. The Convention was located at the University of Houston with the theme, "Houston, We Have A Solution: Vote Green 2016". The convention formally nominated Jill Stein as the party's presidential nominee and Ajamu Baraka as her running mate.

The Iowa Green Party is the Iowa-affiliate of the Green Party of the United States (GPUS). The 2013 Annual Meeting of the GPUS was held at the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jill Stein 2016 presidential campaign</span> Political campaign for United States presidency

Jill Stein, a physician from Massachusetts, announced her entry into the 2016 United States presidential election on June 22, 2015. Stein, who had been the Green Party's presidential nominee in 2012, where she received 469,627 votes. In the 2016 election, she once again secure the Green Party nomination and lose in the general election, She received 1.07% of the popular vote and no electoral college delegates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Green Party presidential primaries</span>

The 2016 Green Party presidential primaries were a series of primaries, caucuses and state conventions in which voters elected delegates to represent a candidate for the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States at the 2016 Green National Convention. The primaries, held in numerous states on various dates from January to July 2016, featured elections publicly funded and held as an alternative ballot, concurrent with the Democratic and Republican primaries, and elections privately funded by the Green Party, held non-concurrently with the major party primaries. Over 400 delegates to the Green National Convention were elected in these primaries, with a candidate needing a simple majority of these delegates to become the party's nominee for president.

The Green Party of Idaho is the state party organization for Idaho of the Green Party of the United States.

The 2024 Green Party presidential primaries and caucuses will be a series of electoral contests to elect delegates to the 2024 Green National Convention who will choose the Green Party's presidential candidate in the 2024 presidential election.

References

  1. ↑ Green Party Congratulates and Welcomes Presidential Nominee David Cobb, Vice Presidential Nominee Pat LaMarche Archived 2010-11-02 at the Wayback Machine , Green National Convention, Forward 2004
  2. 1 2 "Opponents fail to stop US debate". BBC News . 2004-10-13. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  3. ↑ Green Institute Board of Directors, accessed 1 April 2013
  4. ↑ Corporate accountability committee, Sierra Club Archived 2009-03-09 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 1 April 2013
  5. ↑ Archived 2009-03-10 at the Wayback Machine Deadlink 1 April 2013
  6. ↑ "Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County". Archived from the original on 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2009-04-11. Deadlink 1 April 2013
  7. ↑ "Who We Are – continued…" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-04-24. Retrieved 2009-04-11. Deadlink 1 April 2013
  8. ↑ PROGRAM ON CORPORATIONS, LAW & DEMOCRACY, accessed 1 April 2013
  9. ↑ Everson, Bart (September 2002). "GPL Founding Convention photo album".
  10. ↑ Greenson, Thadeus. "'People and Planet Before Profit:' Post-Capitalism Conference Set to Kick Off". North Coast Journal. Retrieved 2021-04-22.
  11. ↑ Berenson, Tessa (September 22, 2016). "Here's Another Way Gary Johnson and Jill Stein Could Win". Time . Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  12. ↑ Office of the Secretary of State. 2002 General Election. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved April 8, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) (accessed 15 December 2006)
Party political offices
Preceded by Green nominee for President of the United States
2004 		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.