Meet Dr. Butch Ware: The Green Party’s Rebrand Campaign for California Governor

Following the town hall event, Ware poses for a photo with social justice activist Gihan Hayden and Sarai Bordeaux, Eureka’s Poet Laureate of 2025/26. 

In the bustling atmosphere of Arcata’s North Country Fair, as community members of all stripes enjoyed art, music and street food galore, we sat down with Dr. Butch Ware, who explained how he hopes to usher in a reimagining of California’s political landscape. Aiming to be seated in a “Green Governor’s mansion,” Dr. Ware says he brings a fresh take on Green Party ideas to the table, working to rebrand the Green Party as a “revolutionary” alternative to either main party in California’s gubernatorial race.

Ware sets himself apart from other candidates and traditional political narratives, saying he intends to make efforts to reach voters in each corner of the state. While in Arcata for a town hall event a day earlier, Ware spent roughly 2 hours taking questions from the audience on a range of subjects. Describing himself unabashedly as the “only” third-party option with a chance of challenging the leading Democrat in the race when the dust settles, he emphasized a vision for grassroots politics where service and awareness are instrumental.

When questioned about critiques of the Green Party’s ability to win or even compete meaningfully in the governor’s race, Ware admitted that the criticism of the Green Party was “fair” while agreeing that the party had previously failed to offer competitive candidates for state level seats.

Asked if he thought the Green Party could be described accurately as “impotent” – a term he used during the town hall to describe Democrats – he said as to the Greens, “This is a party that has been happy to be on the field, and has not been playing to win.” In regard to criticisms of previous Green Party efforts, Ware said, “ I don’t make excuses,” saying that the “proof of the pudding is in the eating.”

A Fresh Green Approach

Sitting down with Dr. Ware amidst the festival goers and lively background, we asked a number of questions about his strategy on running as a Green Party Candidate, his political beliefs, inspirations and motivations for running on the Green Party ticket. Ware was open in his critique of the Democratic party, as much or more so than he was of Republican party leadership, commenting on the Bernie Sanders brand of populism when asked to explain his vision for bringing traditional Democrat or Republican voters and into the Green Party fold.

Ware explained that he recognizes value in the Bernie Sanders model of grassroots fundraising with a populist message, but wants to apply Green Party politics to the ‘Berniecrat’ brand of populism.

Ware argues that Bernie Sanders provided a roadmap for progressive populist politics, but was ultimately constrained by the Democratic Party’s corporate wing, saying that in his estimation, “Bernie Sanders in 2016 was forced into submission by the corporate wing of the party… .” He noted that “many people became Green Party members in 2016 on the day that Bernie Sanders came into that room and told all of those Bernie delegates that he was giving them all to Hillary.”

Beyond that, Ware said that he believes the Democrats have “abandoned white working-class voters,” he says, calling out the party for dismissing Trump supporters specifically, while asserting that Trump’s base were dismissed by Democratic politicians as “simply racist”. He argued that a “Team Blue versus Team Red” narrative was not helpful to voters, but he asserted, was effectively distracting from issues that voters cared about on both sides of the aisle. Ware told us, “The Democrats have abandoned white working class voters since the Bill Clinton era. I mean, they threw white working class voters under the bus, and then they tried to absolve themselves for the responsibility of NAFTA by calling all Trump voters racist.”

Dr. Butch Ware explains his political ideology and Green Party candidacy for California Governor to replace Gavin Newsom. [All Photos and Videos by Ryan Hutson]

Ware described where his political views come from, saying that his foundation of political understanding rests in the teachings of civil rights era leaders like Malcom X and Stokely Carmichael – both credited as being critical thought leaders in the development of the Black Power movement of the 1970’s.

Ware told us that according to the political ideology of Carmichael, who later identified as Kwame Ture after converting to Islam and helped mold the principles of the Black Panther Party, “Revolutionaries don’t just mobilize around issues. Revolutionaries organize against systems.” Ware, a professor of history, was open about channeling the teachings of Ture, and described his campaign as more than building up to an election– calling his efforts part of a larger social movement for change in politics. “We’re offering the Green Party as a Liberation Party… ,” he said, adding that the term “revolution” was not in regard to violence, but referred to a changing of position. Ware explained, “Revolution just means a turning of a wheel. It means that which is at the bottom comes up to the top,” referencing voters who feel they have been overlooked by either of the two leading parties – Democrat or Republican.

Taking lessons from political leaders of the late 60’s and 70’s, and leaning into the roots of his “impoverished” upbringing, Ware says he would not have chosen this path, but that he was “called to service” and is prepared to take the campaign for California Governor as far as the voters will carry it.

A Platform for Reform

Centering housing, healthcare and homelessness issues as his top three platform issues, Ware says that the people of California have asked for better, and deserve to have security in housing and healthcare as priorities. “You should not always go bankrupt because of a cancer diagnosis,” he stated when asked about his platform for Governor. “Health care companies should not take 35 cents off of every dollar just to deny you care,” he said, while noting that both of the “red and blue teams” have let California voters down. His universal single-payer plan aims to eliminate corporate interference in medical treatment, he explained, noting that his campaign only takes donations from “real people” and does not accept any corporate funding.

“We do not take any corporate donations,” he said, when asked what type of funding sources his campaign relies on. “We do not take any PAC donations. Every donation has to come from a human being with a name,” he explains, positioning himself as a grassroots organizing candidate, with a funding model which holds him accountable only to “the people,” he said.

On housing issues and homelessness, Ware notes that Governor Gavin Newsom has come under scrutiny for what some have called “sweetheart deals” to private contractors. “We need to get private equity firms out of the real estate industry. We’re going to tax them so hard they’ll want to sell to the state,” he said, explaining that his proposed solution involves state-operated social housing modeled after Vienna‘s successful approach.

When asked for his thoughts as to California’s many Native tribes and their community needs specifically, Ware noted that his campaign believes in Native American communities achieving justice on a variety of issues from Salmon and water flow restoration to the ongoing struggles related to missing persons cases. He replied, “We believe in ‘land back‘,” adding, “we believe in restorative justice for indigenous communities.”

Ware said during the Green Party sponsored town hall event, that he “plans to pull exactly zero punches” when discussing current political parties. “Team Blue and Team Red are now militarized fascist parties,” he told us during the direct interview at the Plaza, echoing some of the rhetoric used in the 3-hour town hall that was held the evening prior, at Cal Poly Humboldt. “One comes with a cross,” he said, “the other with a rainbow flag– but their corporate politics are the same.”

A Personal Investment in Social Justice

His personal story drives his political vision, as he explains it, beginning with humble roots in Washington, DC. “When I’m talking about the homelessness crisis, it’s something I’ve experienced personally in my own life,” explained Ware.

Saying he has been inspired by the teachings of Islam and of Malcolm X, he made it clear that he sees his candidacy as part of a larger liberation struggle. Ware frequently referenced civil rights era political dissidents and leaders of the Black Liberation movement of the time, as his inspirations.

Dr. Butch Ware, after the 3-hour marathon town hall, in Arcata September 19.

Asked what were three things he wanted voters to know about him before going to the polls, he offered: a commitment building up the Green Party base, notes on his personal history of economic hardships, and that he is not a politician by trade.

Being asked to only offer up three points that he would want to convey, he elaborated on each:

First, he explained his stance on social justice, and underscored that this was not his first political rodeo. “I have been an organizer and an activist and an educator for my whole life,” Ware said, adding, “and I never considered electoral politics until I was asked to run for vice president of the United States in the 2024 election by Dr. Jill Stein.” Asserting that this “is not the life I would have chosen for myself,” Ware conceded that he was not one to reject a “call to service” in politics. He explained, “I have come to believe that we need a fundamental intervention in our politics. So I am in this thing to win this thing, after getting tagged into a fight, I do not leave the fight until the other side goes down.”

Second, Ware described what he wanted folks to know about his personal background, telling us, “My journey started really in abject poverty. I am a son of a locksmith with a sixth grade education and teenage mom.” Offering a flashback to his mother’s struggle and his difficult childhood, Ware added, “My mom was 15 years old pregnant with me, and told by her high school guidance counselor to abort the child, because she was pregnant by a black man. That was 1973 in Washington, DC, and I grew up in deep poverty for the first 10 plus years of my life.” Clarifying the extent of his personal experience with housing insecurity, he noted candidly, “When I’m talking about homelessness crisis, it’s something that I’ve experienced personally in my own life.”

And third on the list, Ware wanted to differentiate himself from career politicians and from either mainstream party. “I’m not a cardboard cutout politician,” he stated. “And if you follow me on any of our social media platforms, or go to ButchWare4gov.com you’re going to see… an ordinary guy,” and he conceded, “yes, with a lot of education and a PhD, and who’s been doing a lot of things, but ultimately, I’m just trying to serve ordinary working people, because I come from an ordinary working class background.”

The full September 20 interview with Dr. Butch Ware covers all of the questions detailed in this reporting, and much more.

As California approaches its gubernatorial election, Dr. Butch Ware claims to offer a reimagined Green alternative to traditional political narratives— a campaign promising systemic change from the ground up, says Ware.

The Green gubernatorial candidate emphasized his solidarity with marginalized communities and voters across the state, promising to be “a governor for all Californians.” As he sat surrounded by cultural art and music festivities, between crafts and information booths, at the Arcata Plaza, Dr. Ware added, “Free Palestine, free California, free the United States of America from fascism and tyranny,” reflecting the unconventional spirit of his Green Party campaign.