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This Issue 11/16/2006

Also in this issue

• Fast food for thought
• Home is where the art is
• Ego Boost
• Ego of the week

On Nov. 7, Election Night, Senator-elect Bob Casey joined thousands of supporters at the Scranton Cultural Center on the campus of Lackawanna College to celebrate his victory. Rick Santorum lamented his loss at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh. And Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli chowed down on herb-infused chicken at the Hard Rock Caf‚ in Washington D.C. At 4:59 p.m., after an arduous ride through downtown Washington, just seconds before the end of the business day, Romanelli filed a brief at the United States Supreme Court arguing that a Pennsylvania trial court judge and the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court shouldn't have tossed him off the ballot. Romanelli made history by collecting 99,802 signatures on petitions to become a candidate in this year's Senate race. His hard work became null and void because of challenges put forth by Bob Casey and his Democratic Party - taking full advantage of state laws that are specifically designed to inhibit the growth of third parties.

Robert Casey Jr. is the next anointed king in a Pennsylvania political dynasty. But Carl Romanelli doesn't come from that type of political pedigree. For the past seven generations, tracing their roots back to the "old country," Romanellis have been sculptors. Carl's brand of sculpting isn't the one that you'd expect: he's carved out settlements as a Family Court Officer at the Luzerne County courthouse, where he worked for 25 years until his retirement three years ago. And now, he's the creator of a failed bid for the United States Senate, as the Pennsylvania Green Party's nominee.

Until his long shot chance at becoming an elected official ended with a tap of Judge James E. Kelley's gavel, Carl Romanelli was the only pro-choice, pro gay rights, and openly anti-war candidate in the Pennsylvania race for the U.S. Senate. Romanelli believes in the core values of the national Green Party, which include grassroots democracy, feminism and diversity. This party is unique because it takes no financial contributions from corporations, relying only on individuals for donations. But Carl Romanelli wasn't always a Green.

"The two things in my life that I'd never thought I'd change were my religion and my political party. I went from being a Catholic to a Presbyterian in 1985 and I've been a Green since the day after Election Day in 2000," Romanelli explains. The Democratic Party was never able to knead Romanelli into a loyal partisan. He often supported candidates who weren't endorsed by the masses, like Gary Hart in the 1984 presidential primary against Walter Mondale. However, on Election Day 2000, he concluded that the Republicans were going to steal the election and that the "Democrats would let them get away with it, and I didn't want to be a part of it." And thus Carl Romanelli the Green was born.