Just how low can the Republican party go to ensure winning an election?

Body and Soul tells the story of how California Republicans dug up someone “who doesn’t even think of himself as a Green — talked him into running, and paid his fees to run as the Green Party candidate” in order to help siphon votes away from the Democrat Party’s challenger (Peg Pinard) to Republican Abel Maldonado in the race for the State Senate.

To their credit, Body and Soul says, the Green Party — which had already decided not to run a candidate against Peg Pinard and would have listed her as their candidate if she weren’t already listed as the Dem candidate (in California, you cannot list the same candidate for more than one party) — has been actively working to let people know of this dirty trick and encouraging their members to vote for Pinard.

The problem is, not everyone who “votes Green” is a member of the Green Party. Some will not get the news of this dirty trick and will be misled. Votes will be siphoned away from the Democrat Party’s candidate, helping the Republicans to the victory they’ve shown they will have regardless of what has to be done to the integrity of our country’s historical reliance on the will of the people expressed through their votes.

Related Links

• San Luis Obispo Tribune: Dirty trick alleged in state senate contest