From the Fergus Falls Daily Journal

Ken Pentel, the Green Party-endorsed candidate for governor, swung through Fergus Falls Wednesday in his third campaign for the highest office in Minnesota.

And though the Greens are no longer a major party in the state, Pentel has been steadily doing better: His first run in 1998 landed him just over 7,000 votes, but his 2002 campaign garnered over 53,000. He believes his party is indeed viable, but only if Minnesotans are able to vote how they want. "If people vote with their values, that is like a pebble in the pond — it has a ripple effect," Pentel said. "I'm asking people to vote (for) what they hope and believe it, rather than fear."

A former Greenpeace activist and Green Party lobbyist, Pentel is advocating for strong lobby reform laws for his biggest selling point — honest democracy. "Forty-two million dollars was spent on lobbying in 2004," Pentel said. "The government is basically being used for commercial purposes." To change that, Pentel would institute proportional representation, instant runoff voting and greater public financing of campains. "It's about the people, and people are not being represented honestly," he said.

Once that is achieved, Pentel has other concerns. He proposes decentralizing energy, encouraging energy-efficient appliances and is a proponent of cogeneration, a process whereby waste energy is trapped and transformed into new energy. Pentel cited the St. Paul energy district as a role model, noting they save 46 percent of their energy that way.

He is also the only candidate for governor on the ballot advocating single-payer universal health care, similar to programs used in Canada and the VA. The system would eliminate HMOs, health insurance companies and advertising, and Pentel said everyone would be covered by the state rather than by their employer. "If we do this, we will reduce stress and suffering and make Minnesota a magnet for businesses," he said.

With Danene Provencher as his running mate, Pentel said he's looking to localize economies, bring more resources to greater Minnesota and preserve the ecology for future generations. "The dominant interests that run our government will continue unless somebody steps in, and I'm prepared to do the job," Pentel said. "Now it's up to the people to support us."