[Campaign Diaries is a new series at The American Commons. James Hanink is a candidate running for Governor of California on the American Solidarity Party ticket. Every other week, James will publish a “campaign diary” entry here at The American Commons magazine.]

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On Friday, July 2, the California Secretary of State let it be known that the Special Recall Election would be held September 14. At last! After having failed to get the official go ahead, we could finally begin to collect the necessary signatures in support of my candidacy. And guess what? They were due at the County Registrar’s the following Tuesday, July 6.

In the halcyon days of yore I would have said, “I blame it on the system”! Now, as a (semi)venerable greybeard I say, well, “I blame it on the system”! The duopoly disdains third party upstarts, and it shows.

No matter. Our little blue engine, having early on declared that it could, did. We collected the signatures, drawing from a number of counties statewide. But this Friday, July 16, offers fresh opportunities to meet California deadlines. Gentle readers, you might recall that Plato puzzled over the question of just how many Platonic forms there were. The Secretary of State knows very well how many forms that she requires, not to mention two copies, one redacted and one not, of a candidate’s tax returns from the last five years. “On it,” we said.

Fortunately, Ed Frankovic, the campaign treasurer, is keeping track of all the due dates and copying all the paperwork. Skylar Covich and Desmond Silveira continue to manage the campaign, which continues to need lots of managing. Plus, Erskine Levi, Jr., and Cole Kinder, having gathered many a signature, are gathering no moss!

Meanwhile, back at the National Committee dashboard, Patrick Harris and Tony Guidotti have been helping with fundraising, and Dr. Rene Trabanino has a billboard advert in the works. So give us a chance and we’ll spend responsibly. (We keep all our receipts!)

Of course, prayers are in order, as always. Over the years, our friend Matthew Bartko has called the Party’s attention to the vital role of the prayer warrior. 

When I received an email message from Politico asking if the campaign was for real, I answered that it sure is, even if California is surreal. Our message is unique. No other party is pro-life for the whole of life. No other party promotes distributism. No other party has a localist perspective.

The party that I am privileged and proud to represent has the potential to renew American politics. The tradition from which the American Solidarity Party draws, the Christian Democracy movement, did in fact renew European politics after the disaster of World War II. It is the same tradition that served as midwife to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

But human rights are increasingly at risk. How could we expect that they be honored if the inherent dignity of the human person is so often misunderstood or denied? But we need not accept the established disorder. Each of us, in our own way, can campaign, politically or otherwise, for a world in which “the person in community,” to borrow the language of Jacques Maritain, is a world that is coming ever more alive. Siempre adelante, con juicio!

You can follow the campaign at:

Dr. James G. Hanink for Governor of California | Facebook
Dr. James G. Hanink for Governor 2021 | (solidarity-party.org)

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Jim Hanink is an independent scholar, albeit more independent than scholarly.