Green party is any of a number of political parties that are most widely known for promoting environmental issues. Other issues advanced by Green parties include the rights of women and opposition to capitalism, modernism, the building of nuclear power plants, and the testing and production of nuclear weapons.
Green parties operate primarily in industrialized countries. Germany and other Western European nations have some of the strongest Green parties. In 1983, before the German unification, West Germany’s Green Party became the first Green party in Europe to win seats in a national legislature. Other countries with Green parties include Australia, Austria, Finland, France, New Zealand, Spain, and Sweden.
The United States has many Green parties, many of which belong to the Association of State Green Parties. In 1996 and 2000, Ralph Nader, a prominent lawyer and consumer advocate, represented these groups as the Green Party candidate for president of the United States. Nader won only a small percentage of the votes in either election, but his candidacy brought increased attention to the causes of Green parties in the United States (see Nader, Ralph ).
Most existing Green parties were founded in the 1980’s. But Green parties draw on the traditions of anarchist, socialist, and other left-wing movements that developed in Europe during the 1800’s. Because of their diverse objectives, Green parties have had difficulty joining together to challenge better-established parties. As a result, they have sometimes formed alliances with other kinds of parties, such as the Social Democratic Party in Germany.
