Green Party candidate ends bid for governor (Updated)

The Green Party candidate for governor has dropped out of the race, leaving activists until August 21 to gather the 2,000 signatures needed to get a replacement candidate on the ballot.

Stephen N. Zielinski, Sr. sent a withdrawal letter to the New Jersey Division of Elections.

“I will be stepping down from the race for Governor of New Jersey, as I confront a serious health issue. This is not a goodbye,” stated Zielinski. “You are not losing me. I will continue to fight for policy that transforms our state—from healthcare reform and renewable energy independence to property tax relief and urban agriculture that nourishes all 9.5 million residents of New Jersey.”

Lily Benavides, who had been expected to become Zielinski’s candidate for lieutenant governor, will now seek the governorship.

“I trust her. I believe in her. And I know she will carry this vision forward with strength, compassion, and clarity,” Zielinski said.

New Jersey election law offers independent candidates the option of picking a new candidate, but only by starting over with new petitions.  If the Green Party is unable to secure a new round of signatures, they won’t have a candidate in the general election.  That’s a different standard from major party nominees, who would be replaced on the ballot after a vote of the respective state committee members.

“I accept the challenge of stepping up to Stephen Zielinski’s campaign for governor because I envision a future where everyone is valued, regardless of their skin color, immigration status, or lifestyle. I am running for governor to show the people of New Jersey that there’s hope and that we can leave a better world for our children,” said Benavides.  “I am running to put an end to wars and genocide and to stand in solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters. I am running under the Green Party banner because I uphold the ten key values on which our party is based in my heart. I am running to make a difference in this world and to raise the voice of those who cannot speak.”

Zielinski missed the July 28 statutory deadline to designate a lieutenant governor candidate.  Benavides saidshe will name her own running mate soon.

In 2024, the Green Party ran candidates for U.S. Senate and in all twelve congressional districts; this year, the party fielded Zielinski and just two Assembly candidates: Robin Brownfield in the Camden-based 5th district and Steve Welzer in the Mercer/Middlesex 14th.

The last three Green Party candidates polled under one-half of one percent: Madelyn Hoffman (2021), Seth Haper Dale (2017), Welzer (2013), Jerry Coleman (2001), and Hoffman (1997); the top Green Party performer in a New Jersey governor’s race was Matthew Thielke, who received seven-tenths of one-percent in 2005.  The Green Party did not field a candidate in 2009.

This was Zielinski’s third bid for public office: he received 1.8% of the vote as the Green Party candidate for State Assembly in the 12th district against Republican incumbents Ronald Dancer (R-Plumsted) and Rob Clifton (R-Matawan) in 2015; and he lost an independent bid for Shrewsbury Borough Council in 1992.

This story was updated on August 6 at 1:26 PM.