Grassroots Party
The Grassroots Party is a single-issue political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was created in 1986 to oppose drug prohibition. The party shares many of the political leftist values of the Green Party of the United States but with a greater emphasis on [[marijuana/hemp legalization issues.
Other Grassroots parties have previously operated in the U.S. states of Iowa and Vermont, but are no longer active.
Platform
United States Bill of Rights
The permanent platform of the Grassroots Party is the Bill of Rights. Individual candidates' positions on issues vary from Libertarian to Green. All Grassroots candidates would end marijuana/hemp prohibition, thus re-legalizing cannabis for all its uses.
Minnesota
History
The Grassroots Party was established in Minnesota in 1986, by Derrick Grimmer, Tim Davis, Chris Wright and Oliver Steinberg, as an independent political party that focused on marijuana legalization. Derrick Grimmer, Ph.D., ran for Minnesota Attorney General in 1986. He received 16,394 votes.
The Grassroots Party of Minnesota (GRP) ran a full slate of state-wide candidates in 1990, 1992 and 1994, and won more votes than all other third parties in Minnesota combined.
In 1990, Ross S. Culverhouse, a computer programmer and Vietnam veteran was the Grassroots gubernatorial candidate. Culverhouse received 17,176 votes. Will Shetterly, a science-fiction writer and actor, ran for governor of Minnesota in 1994. He placed third out of six candidates.
Russell Bentley, a party candidate for US Senate in 1990 and US Congress in 1992 and GRP board member, was arrested on marijuana smuggling charges in 1996. Bentley was sentenced to five years in federal prison.
In 2000, the party nominated David Daniels, an African American playwright/performance artist from Minneapolis, as candidate for the United States Senate. Daniels did not have a serious campaign budget and was only invited to speak at some events sponsored by Minnesota Public Radio. On election day, Daniels received 21,447 votes (0.89%). In 2002, Grassroots Party co-founder and candidate, Tim Davis, joined the Green Party.
In 2010, Grassroots candidate Chris Wright was on the ballot in the governor's election, signifying the possibility of the minor political party being re-organized. In 2012, Wright ran for President of the United States as a Grassroots Party candidate.
Results in federal elections
| Year | Office | Candidate | Popular Votes | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | US Senator | Derrick P. Grimmer | 9,016 | 0.43% |
| 1988 | US Representative 5 | T. Christopher Wright | 6,468 | 2.68% |
| 1990 | US Senator | Russell B. Bentley | 29,820 | 1.65% |
| 1992 | US Representative 3 | Dwight Fellman | 9,164 | 2.91% |
| 1992 | US Representative 4 | Dan R. Vacek | 4,418 | 1.59% |
| 1992 | US Representative 5 | Russell Bentley | 6,786 | 2.24% |
| 1994 | US Senator | Candice Sjostrom | 15,920 | 0.90% |
| 1994 | US Representative 4 | Dan R. Vacek | 6,211 | 2.94% |
| 1996 | US Senator | Tim Davis | 14,139 | 0.65% |
| 1996 | US Representative 4 | Phil Willkie | 3,615 | 1.41% |
| 1996 | US Representative 5 | Erica Anderson | 13,102 | 5.33% |
| 2000 | US Senator | David Daniels | 21,447 | |
| 2012 | US Senator | Tim Davis | 30,532 | 1.07% |
