Green Party campaigners in Bristol

Listening to the Green Party leadership candidates debate on LBC the other day, I was struck by the question about whether they might be described as boring and what was the most exciting thing they’d done.

I found myself wondering about how I’d answer such a question if it were asked of the candidates for Chair. And, yes, I have a very Green Party answer about being arrested while blockading nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons bases, or about working in a bookshop when a BNP member tried to burn it down because we sold lesbian and gay literature (he failed).

But the more I think about it, the more I’m inclined to lean into being boring. Because being Chair requires a different skill set to being in the public-facing part of the leadership team. And many people might describe those as boring. Structuring a meeting agenda to make sure that every voice gets heard, ensuring that processes are democratic and inclusive – and that they are followed, being there to listen and, if wanted, offer advice without any expectation of getting credit – just because it’s the right thing to do.

It’s not glamorous, but I didn’t get into politics for excitement or glamour. I got into politics because the planet is burning, the world is full of injustice, and the people and institutions responsible would rather divide and rule than co-operate to find solutions that benefit us all.

The Green Party offers a different kind of politics. Not just a different set of policies, but a whole other approach – one which believes that the only reason to seek power is so that you can redistribute it, one that values co-operation, and believes that a small voice of quiet, principled opposition is something to be listened to as a source of wisdom rather than to be swept aside in pursuit of the majority view.

These things are hard. Working against the dominant culture and trying to model an alternative way of doing politics takes effort. It’s much easier to go with the flow, to slip into the top-down leadership that society at large expects. But if it were easy, everyone would do it and we wouldn’t need a Green Party.

I know that I, and we as a Party, don’t always get it right, but I firmly believe that it’s worth keeping on trying. And, if I’m re-elected as Chair of the Party’s Executive Committee, I’ll be there in the background, being boring, so that others in the team can focus on making sure voters and the media get excited about our project to re-make the world as a better place for everyone.

And if that excites you, you might consider voting for the boring candidate.

Jon Nott is a candidate for chair of the Green Party Executive

Image credit: Bristol Green Party