Hollister
– The San Benito County chapter of the Green Party has organized
a gubernatorial debate between Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Democrat candidate Phil Angelides and Green Party candidate Peter
Camejo to be held at 7pm Friday at the First Presbyterian Church in
Hollister.
Hollister – The San Benito County chapter of the Green Party has organized a gubernatorial debate between Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Democrat candidate Phil Angelides and Green Party candidate Peter Camejo to be held at 7pm Friday at the First Presbyterian Church in Hollister.
Unfortunately, Camejo will be the only one showing.
“What was going to be a debate will now be a forum,” said Lucia Navarro, a founding member of the SBC chapter of the Green Party.
Navarro said invitations were extended to both Schwarzenegger and Angelides, but as of Thursday, neither campaign had responded. The chapter decided it will hold a forum with other Green Party members in lieu of a debate.
“I hope people come here to hear what he has to say,” Navarro said. “I think they will be pleasantly surprised.”
Navarro has sent invitations to registered Green Party members, but said the forum is open to everyone.
Camejo said he will focus on state budget issues and immigration. Contrary to Schwarzenegger and Angelides, Camejo believes the United States should legalize all immigrants living within its borders, regardless of citizenship status.
“We should not have separate laws for people living inside of the United States,” Camejo said.
Camejo, 66, likened any compromise in citizenship status to apartheid, similar to the system he said was used in the South after the Civil War.
“The Democrats’ position tends to be apartheid,” Camejo said. “They tend to be experts on it. They implemented it in the South.”
The San Benito County Democratic Committee and the Republican Party of San Benito County could not be reached for comment.
Camejo is a first-generation Venezuelan-American. He studied math and history at the University of California at Berkeley and MIT and is fluent in Spanish. Camejo ran as a socialist in the 1976 presidential election, gaining ballot status in 30 states, according to the Vote Camejo Web site.
This is not Camejo’s first run at the governor’s seat.
In the 2002 gubernatorial election, 48.9 percent of San Benito County voted for Democrat Gray Davis, 41.8 percent voted for Republican Bill Simon and 4.1 percent voted for the Green Party’s Camejo.
In the 2003 special election, Schwarzenegger had 48.7 percent of San Benito County votes and Camejo received 2.4 percent, according to the California Secretary of State Web site.
Of the 24,219 registered voters in San Benito County, 149 are registered Green Party members compared to 10,928 Democrats and 8,231 Republicans, with 4,083 voters declining to state, according to the San Benito County Clerk Recorder’s Election Department.
And for the 37.8 percent of San Benito County residents who speak Spanish in the household, according to the 2000 Census, Camejo may hit a mark close to home.
“I probably will speak a little Spanish even if it’s unnecessary,” Camejo said.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335.
