Nader makes campaign stop in Portland

PORTLAND – Presidential candidate Ralph Nader said Thursday he’s confident his name will appear on Maine’s ballot in November as he made a campaign stop in the state’s largest city.

The consumer advocate’s campaign supporters are working to get Nader’s name on the ballot in Maine and other states where he plans to compete. To get Nader’s name on Maine’s ballot as an unenrolled independent, his supporters must collect 4,000 petition signatures before Aug. 15.

Nader said he expects volunteers will help him collect the signatures he needs and is counting on Mainers’ penchant for independence to help his candidacy.

Nader does not have the endorsement of the national Green Party. While many in the party still support him, he said, one faction opposes his campaign because it believes it might help re-elect President Bush.

Another group supports his campaign but only in states where Democratic presumptive nominee Sen. John Kerry and Bush are not in a tight race.

Nader said the current election landscape is different than four years ago, when many Democrats blamed him for siphoning enough votes from Democrat Al Gore to give George W. Bush the presidency.

He said the United States is engaged in an increasingly unpopular war. Nader’s candidacy this time has been endorsed by the Reform Party. Nader also believes that Republican disaffection with the federal deficit and the government’s growing intrusion into private life will increase his support.

While in Portland, Nader laid out his rationale for running and a message he believes will resonate with disaffected voters.

“Corporate government is what’s in place and the two parties are proxies,” Nader said during a pre-rally meeting with reporters at the Peace and Justice Center. “They’ve taken the country away from the American people.”

Nader believes the Bush administration exaggerates the threat of terrorism because it stifles criticism from Democrats and distracts citizens from other issues.