## Overview The **Green Party of the United States** (GPUS) is a progressive political organization primarily focused on environmentalism, social justice, grassroots democracy, and nonviolence, drawing inspiration from the international Green movement[6]. The party is best known for its advocacy of policies such as the Green New Deal, universal health care, support for social justice movements like Black Lives Matter, and reproductive rights[6]. Greens operate at local, state, and national levels, emphasizing decentralized, community-based decision-making and direct citizen participation in politics[3][6]. ## History The U.S. Greens emerged in the mid-1980s, inspired by the success of Green parties in Europe, particularly Germany, where the movement first achieved electoral success in the early 1980s[2]. The American movement began in 1984 with the founding of a state party in Maine by activists Alan Philbrook and John Rensenbrink, both influenced by Green activities abroad[6]. Early U.S. Greens were initially reluctant to engage in electoral politics, preferring grassroots activism and protest movements[2]. By 1985, the first Green candidates ran for office in North Carolina and Connecticut, and the movement rapidly grew through local organizing and national gatherings, such as the First National Green Gathering in 1987[3][4]. Internal debates over strategy—whether to focus on electoral politics or remain an “anti-party party”—led to organizational splits, most notably between the Greens/Green Party USA (G/GPUSA) and the Association of State Green Parties (ASGP)[1]. The ASGP, which later became the GPUS, gained Federal Election Commission recognition as a national party in 2001, consolidating most Green electoral activity under one banner[1][5]. ## Key Achievements The GPUS gained significant public attention during the 2000 presidential election, when Ralph Nader and Winona LaDuke received nearly three million votes[1][3]. The