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Not to be confused with Grassroots–Legalize Cannabis Party or Independent Grassroots Party.

Grassroots Party
AbbreviationGRP
Founded1986 (1986)
Dissolved2012
Preceded byYouth International Party
Succeeded byLegal Marijuana Now Party
NewspaperThe Canvas
IdeologyMarijuana legalization
Colors  Green

The Grassroots Party was a political third party in the United States established in 1986 to oppose drug prohibition. The party shared many of the progressive values of the Farmer–Labor Party but with an emphasis on cannabis/hemp legalization issues, and the organization traced their roots to the Youth International Party of the 1960s.[1][2][3]

The Grassroots Party was active in the U.S. states of Iowa, Minnesota, and Vermont. The party was most successful in Vermont, where they achieved major party qualification in 1996,[4] a status which they retained for six years, until 2002.

Platform

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United States Bill of Rights

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The permanent platform of the Grassroots Party was the Bill of Rights. Individual candidates' positions on issues varied from Libertarian to Green. All Grassroots candidates would end marijuana/hemp prohibition, thus re-legalizing cannabis for all its uses.

U.S. presidential candidates

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Jack Herer (1939–2010), author of The Emperor Wears No Clothes: Hemp & The Marijuana Conspiracy, was the Grassroots presidential candidate in 1988[5] and 1992.[6]

Grassroots Party ran candidates in every presidential election from 1988 to 2000.[5][6][7][8]

In 1996 the Grassroots Party of Minnesota nominated Dennis Peron in the presidential election. In 2000, the Grassroots Party of Vermont nominated Denny Lane as their presidential candidate.

In 2012, the Grassroots Party nominated Minnesota businessman Jim Carlson as their presidential candidate.[9][10]

Results in presidential elections

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Year Candidate VP candidate Ballot access Popular votes Percentage
1988
Jack Herer
Dana Beal		 MN 1,949[5] 0.00%
1992
Jack Herer		 Derrick Grimmer MN, IA 3,875[6] 0.00%
1996
Dennis Peron
Arlin Troutt		 MN, VT[7] 5,378[7] 0.01%
2000
Denny Lane
Dale Wilkinson		 VT 1,044[11] 0.00%
2012 Jim Carlson
George McMahon		 MN 3,149 0.00%

History

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Early history

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The Grassroots Party was established in Minnesota in 1986, by Tim Davis, Derrick Grimmer, Oliver Steinberg, and Chris Wright, as an independent political party that focused on marijuana legalization. Derrick Grimmer, Ph.D., ran for Minnesota Attorney General in 1986. Grimmer received 16,394 votes.[12]

Founding member Oliver Steinberg, who was a Republican candidate for US Congress in 1984,[13] had a background of violence discrediting the peace movement in the 1970s.[14] Steinberg was the Grassroots candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 1990.[15]

The Grassroots Party of Minnesota (GRP) ran a full slate of statewide candidates in 1994 and won more votes than all other third parties in Minnesota combined.[16][17] The Vermont Grassroots Party was formed in 1994.

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.[18]

The Independent Grassroots Party

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In Minnesota in 1996 the Grassroots Party split, forming the Independent Grassroots Party for one election cycle. John Birrenbach was the Independent Grassroots presidential candidate and George McMahon was the vice-presidential candidate.[7] Dan Vacek was the Independent Grassroots candidate for US Representative (MN District 4).[19][20] In 1998, members of the Independent Grassroots Party established the Legal Marijuana Now political party.[3][21]

Minnesota

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Minnesota Grassroots Party in Saint Paul on April 15, 1991

Gubernatorial candidates

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In 1990, Ross Culverhouse, a computer programmer and Vietnam veteran was the Grassroots gubernatorial candidate. Oliver Steinberg was the party's candidate for Lieutenant Governor. 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.[22]

Results in Minnesota gubernatorial elections

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Year Office Candidate Lieutenant Governor candidate Popular votes Percentage
1990 MN Governor Ross Culverhouse Oliver Steinberg 17,176[15] 0.96%
1994 MN Governor Will Shetterly Tim Davis 20,785[16] 1.20%
1998 MN Governor Chris Wright Darrell Paulsen 1,727[23] 0.10%
2010 MN Governor Chris Wright Edwin H. Engelmann 7,516 0.36%[24]

Minnesota elections

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In 2000, the party nominated David Daniels, an African American playwright/performance artist from Minneapolis, as candidate for the United States Senate. Daniels had a very small campaign budget and was only invited to speak at some events broadcast on Minnesota Public Radio and Twin Cities Public Television. On election day, Daniels received 21,447 votes.[25][26][27]

In 2002, Grassroots Party co-founder and candidate, Tim Davis, joined the Green Party. Davis returned to the Grassroots Party and ran for United States Senator in 2012. Davis, in 2020, became chairperson of the Legal Marijuana Now Party Minnesota chapter.

2010–2014

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Minnesota Grassroots Party logo, circa 2012

In 2010, Grassroots candidate Chris Wright was on the ballot in the governor's election.

The last Grassroots Party candidates ran in Minnesota, in 2012.

Steinberg and Wright, in 2014, formed the Minnesota Grassroots–Legalize Cannabis Party. Davis and the rest of the Grassroots Party, from 2014 to 2016, merged into the Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now Party.[28]

After 2014

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In 2023, Grassroots Party founder Oliver Steinberg testified before the Minnesota Senate Public Safety Committee, in favor of Senate File 73 to create a regulated commercial cannabis market in the state.[29] Some scholars have credited Minnesota's marijuana political parties, including GRP, for the state Democratic Party championing cannabis legalization after 2016.[30]

Results in Minnesota state elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1986 MN Attorney General Derrick Grimmer 16,394[12] 1.17%
1990 MN Secretary of State Candice Sjostrom 43,812[15] 2.48%
1990 MN Treasurer Colleen Bonniwell 84,919[15] 4.94%
1990 MN Senator 58 Eric Anderson 1,797[15] 7.88%
1990 MN Representative 59B Tim Davis 755[15] 5.56%
1990 MN Representative 60A Spencer Orman 477[15] 7.29%
1992 MN Senator 59 Dale Wilkinson 2,179[31] 7.05%
1994 MN Secretary of State Dale Wilkinson 54,009[16] 3.12%
1994 MN Attorney General Dean Amundson 69,776[16] 4.17%
1994 MN Auditor Steven Anderson 80,811[16] 4.79%
1994 MN Treasurer Colleen Bonniwell 84,486[16] 5.20%
1998 MN Representative 59A Dale Wilkinson 1,270[23] 9.66%

Results in federal elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1988 US Senator Derrick Grimmer 9,016[5] 0.43%
1988 US Representative 5 Chris Wright 268[5] 0.11%
1990 US Senator Russell Bentley 29,820[15] 1.65%
1992 US Representative 3 Dwight Fellman 9,164[31] 2.91%
1992 US Representative 4 Dan Vacek 4,418[31] 1.59%
1992 US Representative 5 Russell Bentley 6,786[31] 2.24%
1994 US Senator Candice Sjostrom 15,920[16] 0.90%
1994 US Representative 4 Dan Vacek 6,211[16] 2.94%
1996 US Senator Tim Davis 14,139[20] 6.48%
1996 US Representative 4 Phil Willkie 3,615[20] 1.41%
1996 US Representative 5 Erika Anderson 13,102[20] 5.33%
2000 US Senator David Daniels 21,447[27] 0.89%[27]
2012 US Senator Tim Davis 30,532 1.07%

Iowa

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Derrick Grimmer, Ph.D., a founding member of the Grassroots Party, moved from Minnesota to Iowa in 1988 and formed the Grassroots Party of Iowa. Grimmer ran for Iowa State Treasurer in 1990 and received 15,745 votes and he ran for U.S. House of Representatives (IA District 3) in 1994 and received 2,282 votes.[32][33]

Results in Iowa state elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1990 IA Treasurer Derrick Grimmer 15,745[32] 1.76%
1990 IA Secretary of Agriculture Richard Bychowski 16,138[32] 1.80%

Results in federal elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1994 US Representative 3 Derrick Grimmer 2,282[33] 1.18%
1994 US Representative 4 William Oviatt 803[33] 0.38%

Vermont

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Logo of the Vermont Grassroots, circa 1994

Gubernatorial candidates

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The Vermont Grassroots Party formed in 1994. Dennis Lane was their candidate for Governor of Vermont in 1994, and 1996. Bill Coleman ran for Lieutenant Governor in 1996, and again in 1998.

Joel Williams was the Vermont Grassroots nominee for Governor in 1998, and 2000.

Results in Vermont gubernatorial elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1994 Vermont Governor Dennis Lane 2,118 1.0%[34]
1996 Vermont Governor Dennis Lane 3,667 1.4%[35]
1996 Lieutenant Governor Bill Coleman 5,296 2.1%[35]
1998 Vermont Governor Joel Williams 3,305 1.5%[36]
1998 Lieutenant Governor Bill Coleman 3,913 1.8%[36]
2000 Vermont Governor Joel Williams 1,359 0.5%[11]
2000 Lieutenant Governor Tom Beer 8,776 3.1%[11]
2002 Vermont Governor Patricia Hejny 771 0.4%[37]
2002 Lieutenant Governor Sally Ann Jones 4,310 1.9%[37]

Vermont elections

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Robert Melamede, 1994 and 1998 Vermont Grassroots Party nominee for U.S. Senator

In 1994, in addition to Governor, Vermont Grassroots ran candidates for U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Auditor of Accounts, and Attorney General.[34] Robert Melamede was Vermont Grassroots nominee for U.S. Senator, in 1994, and again in 1998.[38]

In 1996, genetic researcher and microbiologist Melamede, whose views promoting the curative properties of cannabis put him at odds with mainstream academia, was Grassroots candidate for U.S. Representative.[38] Vermont Grassroots again ran a slate of candidates including Governor, Lieutenant Governor, U.S. Representative, Attorney General, Auditor of Accounts, State Treasurer, and Secretary of State.

Three Vermont Grassroots candidates won five percent or more of the popular vote in the 1996 election, qualifying the Grassroots Party for recognized major party status in Vermont.[35][4]

In 1998 Vermont Grassroots ran a slate of candidates including gubernatorial candidate Joel Williams who received 3,305 votes (1.5%), and U.S. Senate candidate Melamede who received 2,459 votes (1.1%). Matthew Mulligan received 3,464 votes (1.6%) for U.S. Representative; Randy Bushey got 12,312 votes (6%) for State Treasurer; Steven Saetta got 6,345 votes (3%) for Auditor of Accounts; Dennis "Denny" Lane received 8,347 votes (3.9%) for Secretary of State and Sandy "Wells" Ward got 17,954 votes (8.8%) for Attorney General.[36]

In 2000 the Vermont Grassroots Party ran a slate of candidates with Ward leading the ticket as candidate for Attorney General, receiving 38,713 votes, or 14.7% of the popular vote.[11]

The Grassroots Party of Vermont fielded candidates representing a mixture of liberal and libertarian views for over a decade. The Vermont Grassroots Party dissolved after 2002.

In 2002 one of the Vermont Grassroots state leaders, Joel Williams, became a member of the Libertarian Party of Vermont. The Vermont Marijuana Party was formed in 2002 by Loretta Nall and Cris Ericson.

Vermont Grassroots Party ran a full slate, including gubernatorial candidates, in 2002. Teresa Bouchard led the way as candidate for State Treasurer with 10,757 votes (4.8%).[37]

Results in Vermont state elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1994 VT Auditor Pamela Zarra Redden 7,239 3.7%[34]
1994 VT Attorney General Ted Talcott 7,062 3.5%[34]
1996 VT Treasurer Randy Bushey 16,671 7.0%[35]
1996 VT Secretary of State Jimmy De Pierro 17,283 7.4%[35]
1996 VT Auditor James Sweet 11,134 4.7%[35]
1996 VT Attorney General Tom Kingston 14,443 6.1%[35]
1998 VT Treasurer Randy Bushey 12,312 6.2%[36]
1998 VT Secretary of State Dennis Lane 8,347 4.0%[36]
1998 VT Auditor Steven Saetta 6,345 3.1%[36]
1998 VT Attorney General Sandy Ward 17,954 8.9%[36]
2000 VT Attorney General Sandy Ward 39,713 14.7%[11]
2002 VT Treasurer Claude Bouchard 10,757 4.8%[37]
2002 VT Secretary of State Tina Thompson 7,166 3.2%[37]
2002 VT Auditor Lynn Appleby 8,172 3.7%[37]
2002 VT Attorney General Mann Ward 6,307 2.8%[37]

Results in federal elections

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Year Office Candidate Popular votes Percentage
1994 US Senator Bob Melamede 1,416 0.7%[34]
1994 US Representative Jack Rogers 2,664 1.3%[34]
1996 US Representative Robert Melamede 1,350 0.5%[35]
1998 US Senator Bob Melamede 2,459 1.1%[36]
1998 US Representative Matthew Mulligan 3,464 1.6%[36]
2000 US Senator Billy Greer 4,889 1.7%[11]
2000 US Representative Jack Rogers 4,799 1.7%[11]
2002 US Representative Fawn Skinner 2,344 1.0%[37]

California

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In 2016, musician and martial artist Marvin Sotelo ran for U.S. House of Representatives in California's 40th congressional district as a Grassroots Party candidate. In California the top two vote-getters in the primary advance to the general election. Sotelo did not make it onto the ballot.[39]

Publications

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The Canvas, Winter 1994

The Canvas

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The Canvas, the newsletter of the Grassroots Party of Minnesota, was published quarterly from 1991 until 1996. It reached a circulation of 5,000 printed copies.

The name of The Canvas was inspired by Webster's Dictionary definition of the word, which literally means "hempen."

From 1991 to 1994, The Canvas newsletter was designed and edited by Dan Vacek. During 1992, The Canvas was co-edited by Roger Gibian. In 1994–1995, Will Shetterly edited and produced The Canvas for several issues.[2] In 1996, an issue of the newsletter was edited by Steven Anderson, and the last issue, published for the 1996 elections, was edited by Tim Davis.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Kahn, Aron (October 1987). "Marijuana backers keep issue burning / Controversy still alive". Star Tribune. "When we're handing out leaflets, some people will mutter, 'Get a job,' like we're subclass citizens," Grimmer said. "They typecast us. They judge people by the coloration of their thoughts." Grimmer, who holds a doctorate in physics, has a job, thank you. He is a research scientist at 3M. "The reason why we are in our present mess with respect to drug prohibition is that people do not analyze the situation rationally," said Grimmer, who ran for Minnesota attorney general last year under the aegis of the Grass Roots Party.
  2. ^ a b Gilyard, Burl (July 5, 1995). "Doobie Brothers: Grassroots Party members grapple with their budding political clout". Twin Cities Reader.
  3. ^ a b Harvieux, Vincent (May 3, 2018). "Joint Ops: Why Minnesota has two pro-marijuana parties". Perfect Duluth Day.
  4. ^ a b Tuman, Joseph S. (2008). "The Players in the Process". Political Communication in American Campaigns. SAGE Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-412-90945-7.
  5. ^ a b c d e Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1988). "Minnesota Election Results 1988" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. p. 18.
  6. ^ a b c Klein, Patricia A. (June 1993). "Federal Elections 92: Election Results for the U.S. President, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives" (PDF). Federal Election Commission. p. 9.
  7. ^ a b c d Bickford, Bob (October 7, 1998). "1996 Presidential Election Results by State". Ballot Access News.
  8. ^ "2000 Official Presidential General Election Results". Federal Election Commission. December 2001.
  9. ^ KBJR-TV (June 29, 2012) "Duluth Head Shop Owner Continues Presidential Bid"[dead link‍], MSNBC. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  10. ^ "Grassroots Party Nominates a Presidential Ticket", Ballot Access News. July 7, 2012. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g Secretary of State of Vermont (2000). "Election Results Archive: 2000 General Election". Vermont Elections Database.[permanent dead link‍]
  12. ^ a b Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1986). "Minnesota Election Results 1986" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. p. 27.
  13. ^ Minnesota Secretary of State (September 1984). "Minnesota Election Results 1984" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. p. 4.
  14. ^ Darn, John (May 12, 1972). "Violent Actions Reported Rising: Frustration Also Mounts as Students Clash with Police". The New York Times. The shooting in Madison occurred about 2:30 A.M., the police said, after hours of street fighting, when three policemen followed a car containing three students suspected of having planted Molotov cocktails near an insurance building. As the patrol car followed the car to the driveway of an apartment building at Dayton and Bedford Streets, eight shots were fired from the building, the police said. One policeman was wounded in the wrist, and the other two—including John Halford, who was hospitalized—were wounded in the shoulder. The police returned the fire and flushed five men out of the building with tear gas. A 22‐caliber and a .25‐caliber pistol were found. The man charged with three counts of attempted murder was identified as Oliver W. Steinberg, former undergraduate. The three occupants of the car were charged with conspiracy to commit arson. Bail for Mr. Steinberg was set at $55,000, and for the other three at $10,000. All are Madison residents.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1990). "Minnesota Election Results 1990" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. pp. 28–50.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1994). "Minnesota Election Results 1994" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. pp. 27–36.
  17. ^ Brauer, David (November 26, 1994). "In Minnesota, Joint Return Takes On A New Meaning". The Washington Post.
  18. ^ "Man sentenced in marijuana case". The Monitor. August 10, 1996.
  19. ^ Shaffer, David (July 22, 1996). "On political fringe, with public funds: Grassroots Party stands on prostitution, adult-child sex push some members away". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Has the Grassroots Party retreated further to the political fringe just as Minnesota taxpayers are beginning to subsidize it? At least some party activists think so, including party co-founder Oliver Steinberg, who recently was expelled in an ideological clash. ... "They say politics makes strange bedfellows," said Steinberg, who founded the party with two other pro-marijuana activists in 1986. "But I don't think the people who vote for the Grassroots Party or give their money to support it want to mix the politics of prostitution and pederasty."
  20. ^ a b c d Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1996). "Minnesota Election Results 1996" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. pp. 34–40.
  21. ^ Brash, Jim (April 20, 2016). "Q & A with the Legal Marijuana Now Party of Minnesota". The North Star. Archived from the original on May 10, 2017.
  22. ^ Shetterly, Will (August 8, 2008). "Will Shetterly: Biography". Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  23. ^ a b Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1998). "Minnesota Election Results 1998" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. pp. 30–172.
  24. ^ "2010 MN Governor Election Results". Minnesota Secretary of State. November 2, 2010.
  25. ^ "Hopefuls from small parties advocate big ideas". Star Tribune. Associated Press. October 17, 2000. The third-party candidates running for the U.S. Senate may suffer from low visibility and virtually nonexistent campaign budgets, but a debate among those candidates Monday night showed they are not lacking in big and bold ideas. Their proposals ranged from ending the war on drugs to remaking society into one that is controlled by workers and farmers. The 30-minute debate, sponsored by the Minnesota Citizens' Forum and broadcast on Twin Cities Public Television.
  26. ^ "Bold ideas advanced by minor parties". Star Tribune. Associated Press. October 22, 2000. Playwright and performance artist David Daniels wonders why two of his productions were shut down because of marijuana smoking in the audience.
  27. ^ a b c "Minnesota Secretary of State, 2000 US Senate Election Results". November 7, 2000. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012.
  28. ^ "Preaching Parking and Profiting: Life Just Outside the Minnesota State Fair". City Pages. August 31, 2017. We used to be called the Grassroots Party, now we're the Legal Marijuana Now Party
  29. ^ Croman, John (January 26, 2023). "Minnesota Senate panel takes in marijuana bill: The Senate's Public Safety Committee heard testimony on recreational pot legislation for the first time". KARE-TV.
  30. ^ Labovitch, William (November 27, 2022). "How Minnesota got to marijuana legalization politically". Star Tribune.
  31. ^ a b c d Minnesota Secretary of State (November 1992). "Minnesota Election Results 1992" (PDF). Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. pp. 37–51.
  32. ^ a b c Iowa Secretary of State (November 1990). "1990 General Election: Official Canvass Summary" (PDF). Iowa Election Results Archive.
  33. ^ a b c Iowa Secretary of State (November 1994). "1994 General Election: Official Canvass Summary" (PDF). Iowa Election Results Archive. p. 4.
  34. ^ a b c d e f Secretary of State of Vermont (1994). "Election Results Archive: 1994 General Election". Vermont Elections Database.[permanent dead link‍]
  35. ^ a b c d e f g h Secretary of State of Vermont (1996). "Election Results Archive: 1996 General Election". Vermont Elections Database.[permanent dead link‍]
  36. ^ a b c d e f g h i Secretary of State of Vermont (1998). "Election Results Archive: 1998 General Election". Vermont Elections Database.[permanent dead link‍]
  37. ^ a b c d e f g h Secretary of State of Vermont (2002). "Election Results Archive: 2002 General Election". Vermont Elections Database.[permanent dead link‍]
  38. ^ a b Picard, Ken (April 25, 2023). "Cannabis Advocate and Researcher 'Dr. Bob' Melamede Dies at 75". Seven Days.
  39. ^ Toole, Edwardo (September 14, 2015). "Satanist Runs For Congress". CNN. Archived from the original on October 7, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
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