40,858 people voted for Nelson Eisman yesterday. That means that 98% of our votes came from people who are not Green Party members. If you are such a person, this message is for you!

Thanks once again to all of you for your support -- and your votes! The results weren't quite what we pictured, but la lucha sigue.

We want to encourage all of you to join your local Green Party. There is much work left to be done. Hundreds of you signed up as supporters of our campaign, and we want to encourage you to talk to each other. Candidates are not the strength of the Green movement -- our strength is in the grassroots, which means YOU.

If you believe that Nelson Eisman of the Green Party best represents your hopes for the future, then don't let last night's results take that belief from you. Unlike some political parties I could mention, the Green Party will continue to hold to the same values after Election Day that it did during the campaign: ecology, democracy, justice, and peace.

The question is not whether or not the Green Party will one day have seats at the table of state and national power, it's a question of when. Your continued support brings that day closer, and your involvement brings it closer still.

For example, before this year, it was highly unusual for Green candidates to run TV ads. This year, our campaign was able to, as was Rae Vogeler's -- and not only us, but Greens in more than a dozen other states. Our party is becoming more mature, more experienced, and more serious about winning.

The game, however, remains rigged against us. In a way, that's a tribute to us: the Democratic and Republican wings of the Corporate Party are not prepared to face us in a fair fight. If they believed their ideas could defeat our ideas in open debates, they would be eager to prove it. Instead, they hide behind contrived rules, treat us like an anomaly, and continue to chant "two-party system... two-party system..."

Don't be fooled. Not only are there four major parties in the US (Democratic, Republican, Green, and Libertarian), there are quite a few smaller parties (the Taxpayer/Constitutionalist Party, Working Families in New York, Peace and Justice in California, Progressive Dane here in Wisconsin, and assorted socialist parties nationwide) and a great many true independent voters. To try to shoehorn all voters into two parties is not just misleading, it's insulting.

Neither wing of the Corporate Party really represents the mainstream of America. Who does? The Green Party. (Sam Smith has an outstanding essay on why that is) We represent the people, because... we are the people. We are working people, trying to make ends meet as we try to change the world. We don't have much money, but we do have each other. We are what's brought us this far, and our continued progress depends on working together.

That's where you come in. Your values -- your real values -- are not reflected in what you say, no matter how eloquently or sincerely you speak. Rather, what you truly believe is shown by what you do. As one of the more than 40,000 people who voted for Nelson Eisman, you've shown the courage of your convictions. That's a great start, but it's only a start. You already know how much work remains to be done. The people concerned about your issues are already gathered together... in the Green Party. Work with us, and we will work with you. Look for your local contact and join the party. We really are going to change the world together.