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Success lies in active membership between elections

By LAWSON HUNTER, past-President of the Green Party of Ontario

To succeed, every organization needs support from a variety of people and on a number of different levels. In their drive to get votes and elect candidates, political parties are no different. It takes voters and supporters and members for a political party to bring its message to the public.

Voters are important for obvious reasons. And with good outreach, we can use voter lists to identify Green Party supporters. Supporters, in turn, help out from time to time because of their interest in seeing the party do well. But members are the life-blood of the Green Party because they understand that with membership comes the opportunity to actually shape and support an organization from the inside.

The goal of the Green Party should therefore be to graduate members of the public from voter to Green Party supporter to Green Party member so that the cycle can repeat itself. Hard work, passion, sacrifice and the dedication of forward thinking individuals have brought the party to where it is today. And that’s because members have become active in recruiting new members, identifying potential supporters, and making a financial commitment to ensure that the next election sees a Green candidate elected in one or more ridings.

There’s a lot of hype during an election. But the real work developing a political party happens between elections: keeping the interest up, developing new, innovative and sustainable policies, listening to members, and showing the media and public that it is relevant to current affairs. So now is the time for members to step up and help the party build on the momentum achieved over the past few elections.

Perhaps you’ve helped on a campaign, taken a lawn sign, donated a small amount of money during an election. Thank you for already being part of the solution. Now, here’s the next challenge – decide how much you want the Green Party to succeed. It will happen, sooner or later, and I’m sure you’d prefer sooner rather than later.

Here are a few ways you can help build a successful Green Party between elections:

1) Renew your membership
Renewing your membership on a yearly basis demonstrates that the Green Party is strong and represents a significant portion of the population even when there is no election.  Members are ready to jump in when the election is called and provide knowledge and support for those new to the Green Party. Members also bring their many talents into play.

2) Volunteer
You know what your strengths are better than anyone else. Ask yourself, honestly because this is important – ‘how can I contribute in the most meaningful way to develop the party?’  Are you an organizer, a people person, a project manager, a good public speaker, a creative person, big picture or detail oriented? Your skills are needed.

3) Run for office
Some members are prepared to be candidates. Others are thinking about running for a position in their local EDA or CA as campaign manager, volunteer coordinator, or financial agent. Others are interested in running for party council. Whatever the office, we encourage you to take the first step in running so that citizens have a good pool of Green Party talent to choose from.

4) Donate
Not everyone can, nor should they, design policy. Not everyone can, nor should they, organize volunteers. But everyone can do something to help a Green Party campaign – they can donate money. And as we’ve seen all too often, money fuels campaigns. It buys lawn signs, prints brochures, opens offices, buys pizza for campaign volunteers.

Have a good look at how much your donation actually costs (after receiving a tax receipt) and then be as generous as you can. This money will go to hiring staff to help hone Green Party voter identification skills, deliver sound media strategies, map supporter districts and mobilize party resources to recruit excellent candidates and prepare for the next election.

We’ve got the right ideas at the right time. But we need to connect with more than the 8 or 9 percent of the population who voted Green in the last election. We share a passion for our planet and we have dedicated volunteers ready to build the party.

Be part of a successful team. And donate whatever financial or human resources you can. Keep the Green Party strong between and during elections by developing active membership. The future of the Green Party depends on it.

Lawson Hunter was Policy Coordinator and Director of Communications for the GPO before becoming party President from 2007-2009.