Socialist Equality Party to hold election meeting on California crisis

John Christopher Burton, socialist candidate for governor, to speak in Los Angeles

11 September 2003

The Socialist Equality Party will hold a public meeting on October 5 in Los Angeles to present an analysis and discuss the political implications of the gubernatorial recall election in California. The meeting will be the culminating event in the campaign of John Christopher Burton, who is running as a replacement candidate for governor, while opposing the recall of the sitting governor, Gray Davis.

Burton, a civil rights attorney in Los Angeles, is a supporter of the Socialist Equality Party, which has endorsed his campaign. He will appear as an “independent” candidate on the October 7 recall ballot, because, under the state’s restrictive election laws, the SEP does not have ballot status as a party.

The October 5 meeting will be headlined “The Crisis in California: A Socialist Policy for Working People.” In addition to Burton, speakers will include Barry Grey, a leading member of the SEP and a member of the International Editorial Board of the World Socialist Web Site.

The meeting will be held at 1 p.m. in the Concourse Room of the Marriott Hotel, 333 South Figueroa Street, downtown Los Angeles, 90071.

Burton and the Socialist Equality Party are calling for a “no” vote on the recall of Davis, because the drive to remove the Democratic governor from office is an effort to bypass democratic procedures and overturn last November’s election, organized and financed by right-wing elements in the Republican Party and their corporate backers.

At the same time, Burton is giving no political support to Davis or to any of the candidates associated with the Democratic Party who are running in the replacement election. The SEP candidate is running to provide a socialist alternative, should the recall succeed, to the parties and candidates of big business, as well as their liberal third-party and independent critics, such as Green Party candidate Peter Camejo and columnist Arianna Huffington.

Unlike the co-called “major candidates” in the replacement election, Burton has placed opposition to the invasion and occupation of Iraq at the center of his campaign. He is opposing any allocation of funds for the occupation of Iraq and calling for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, Iraq and the entire Middle East.

The Socialist Equality Party has issued a comprehensive election statement, “Vote ‘no’ on the California recall. Vote John Christopher Burton for governor, for a socialist solution to the crisis”, that analyzes the political significance of the recall drive and the crisis in California, tracing their historical roots and their broader national and international implications. The statement outlines a socialist policy to resolve the crisis in the interests of the working people.

Those wishing to attend the October 5 election meeting are asked to register in advance. To register online, please complete the SEP Online Registration Form.