Peter Camejo
Encyclopedia
Peter Miguel Camejo was an American
author, activist and politician. In the 2004 United States presidential election, he was selected by independent candidate Ralph Nader
as his vice-presidential
running mate on a ticket which had the endorsement of the Reform Party
.
Camejo was a three-time Green Party
gubernatorial candidate most recently in 2006
, when he received 2.3 percent of the vote. Camejo also ran in the 2003 California recall election
finishing fourth in a field of 135 candidates (2.8%), and in 2002
, finishing third with 5.3%. In the 1976 presidential election
he was running for the Socialist Workers Party
.
n descent. At the time of his birth, his mother was residing in the Queens
borough of New York City
. Although a "natural born citizen" of the United States (constitutionally eligible for the U.S. Presidency later in life) Camejo spent most of his early childhood in Venezuela.
His parents, Elvia Guanche and Dr. Daniel Camejo Octavio, divorced when their son was seven. Camejo then resided with his mother in the United States and returned to Venezuela during summer holidays to visit family. In later youth Camejo showed talent as a yachtsman, competing in 1960 for Venezuela at the Rome Olympics
.
Camejo entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, involving himself in soccer and, increasingly, left-wing politics. Later he studied history at the University of California, Berkeley
, where he won election to student council. His participation in a protest of the Vietnam War
in 1967 led to his suspension from the university for "using an unauthorized microphone." Then-governor Ronald Reagan
deemed Camejo one of California's ten most dangerous citizens due to his presence at anti-war
protests. He also participated in one of the Selma civil rights marches
.
, a Trotskyist
party. As a branch organizer, he sought to reorient the SWP towards the student movement. He was the SWP's nominee for President in 1976 and won 90,986 votes, or 0.1%.
While a member of the Socialist Workers Party, Camejo wrote Racism, Revolution, Reaction, 1861-1877. The Rise and Fall of Radical Reconstruction(Pathfinder Press).
The SWP's policy was to turn its members into "proletarians" by having them take jobs in factories and advocate for a worker-based class struggle. By 1980, Camejo came to disagree with this policy in favor of democratic socialism
, and the SWP expelled him.
In 1992 Camejo committed $20,000 of his own money toward establishing the Progressive Alliance of Alameda County, an organizational effort that failed to sustain itself. Camejo was quoted in 2002 as claiming that he was a watermelon—green on the outside but red on the inside.
Just over a month after the 2004 election, Camejo was elected as one of California's delegates to the National Committee of the Green Party. At the 2005 Green Party National Convention, Camejo stated that he would not be a candidate for President in 2008.
Camejo wrote a number of articles concerning the divisions evident in the Green Party in the aftermath of the turbulent 2004 national convention, continuing the themes of the Avocado Declaration
in opposing attempts to "cozy up" to the newly-formed Progressive Democrats of America
.
As a candidate for California Governor, Camejo, along with other Green Party candidates and activists Todd Chretien
, Sarah Knopp, Rachel Odes, Don Bechler, Mehul Thakker
, Forrest Hill
, and Donna Warren, wrote California Under Corporate Rule, which he self-published.
In August 2008 he attended the convention of the Peace and Freedom Party in order to personally endorse Nader's presidential candidacy.
Camejo ran for Governor of California three times, against incumbent governors Gray Davis
and Arnold Schwarzenegger
in 2002 and 2006, and in the 2003 recall election in which Schwarzenegger replaced Davis as governor.
, Camejo ran uncontested in the California Green Party gubernatorial primary. In the general election, he ran as part of the first full slate of Green candidates for all seven of California's partisan constitutional offices. Camejo lost the election to Governor Gray Davis
, but he polled 393,036 votes, for 5.3% of the vote, the largest vote total for a third-party
in the California governor's race since 1946
, when Henry R. Schmidt of the Prohibition Party
polled 7.1%. Because the San Francisco Green Party endorsed him, Camejo earned more votes in San Francisco than Republican
gubernatorial nominee Bill Simon, a rarity in third-party politics. Camejo's alienation of the San Francisco local resulted in neither an endorsement nor any effort expended towards organizing for him in subsequent elections and he was unable to beat the Republican in San Francisco in 2003 and 2004.
candidate for governor (although several other Greens appeared on the ballot) in an unprecedented California recall election, in which he polled 242,247 votes for 2.8%, coming in fourth in a field of 135 certified candidates. In a strange preview of the divisions about to erupt on the left in the following year, Camejo first cooperated with, and then competed with, fellow recall candidate Arianna Huffington
.
In 2006
, Camejo made his third bid for Governor of California against incumbent Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Party nominee Phil Angelides
. Camejo received 193,553 votes, or 2.3% of the popular vote.
In June 2004, Camejo campaigned for the vice-presidential spot beside two-time Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader as independents, running against the Green Party nominee. They received the endorsement of the Reform Party
, which gave them ballot access in several states they would not otherwise have. With votes for Nader added in, the Nader/Camejo ticket had what appeared to be an insurmountable 83% of Green voters behind their candidacies going into the Green Party National Convention. However, their lack of contrition about their intentions and Nader's last-minute naming of Camejo as his running mate led to the appearance of a bait and switch
deception, and did not play well with Green delegates. Rejected by the Greens, Nader and Camejo continued their campaign as independent candidates.
Both Nader and Camejo said the main reason they ran in the 2004 election was because there were no other national candidates demanding an immediate withdrawal of American troops from what they believe is an immoral and unconstitutionally pursued War in Iraq (though Green David Cobb
, Libertarian
Michael Badnarik
, Constitution Party
candidate Michael Peroutka
, Socialist Party USA
candidate Walt Brown
and Socialist Workers Party
candidate Róger Calero
also opposed the war to varying degrees.) However, unlike all of these candidates, because Ralph Nader was regularly invited to appear on mainstream news, the Nader and Camejo team were the only candidates who had a regular voice in the mainstream media arguing for withdrawal.
The Nader/Camejo ticket came in a distant third in the election, polling approximately 460,000 votes, or 0.4% of the vote. Camejo's supporters claimed vindication of their assertion that Nader/Camejo had four-to-one support within the party, as Cobb and running mate Pat LaMarche
received scarcely a fifth of their support at 119,859 votes (0.1%) a drop of 95% compared to the Green Party's 2000 national ticket. Camejo's experiences on the 2004 campaign are chronicled in Jurgen Vsych
's book, "What Was Ralph Nader Thinking?"
, where he was Chief Executive Officer of Progressive Asset Management, a financial investment firm that encourages socially responsible projects.
Camejo is the author of The SRI Advantage: Why Socially Responsible Investing Has Outperformed Financially (ISBN 978-0865714779).
At the time of his death, Camejo was engaged in writing North Star: A Memoir (ISBN 978-1931859929), published in May 2010 by Haymarket Books
.
espousing "Independence, Democracy, Empowerment, and Accountability," to support candidates for county councils, the locally elected leadership bodies of the Green Party of California. The IDEA pac is not raising or spending money as of 2010.
Some Greens consider outside intervention in local elections to be a contravention of the Green Ten Key Values of Decentralization and Grassroots Democracy.
Peter Daniels criticized Camejo for "lend[ing] his support to the right-wing effort to depose [California governor Gray] Davis
" by recall in 2004. However, the Green Party
state convention easily voted to endorse Camejo as a recall replacement candidate.
, a cancer that is usually treatable. As of March 2008, after a series of chemotherapy treatments, the cancer was in remission, but in May it was announced that doctors had made a second diagnosis of lymphoma; Camejo died four months later.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author, activist and politician. In the 2004 United States presidential election, he was selected by independent candidate Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
as his vice-presidential
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
running mate on a ticket which had the endorsement of the Reform Party
Reform Party of the United States of America
The Reform Party of the United States of America is a political party in the United States, founded in 1995 by Ross Perot...
.
Camejo was a three-time Green Party
Green Party of California
The Green Party of California is the California affiliate of the Green Party. The party is a ballot-qualified in California, first established as such in 1991, using the petition method of gaining state recognition....
gubernatorial candidate most recently in 2006
California gubernatorial election, 2006
The 2006 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7, 2006. The primary elections took place on June 6, 2006. The incumbent Republican Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, won re election for his first full term. His main opponent was California State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the...
, when he received 2.3 percent of the vote. Camejo also ran in the 2003 California recall election
California recall election, 2003
The 2003 California gubernatorial recall election was a special election permitted under California state law. It resulted in voters replacing incumbent Democratic Governor Gray Davis with Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger. The recall effort spanned the latter half of 2003...
finishing fourth in a field of 135 candidates (2.8%), and in 2002
California gubernatorial election, 2002
The 2002 California gubernatorial election was an election that occurred on November 5, 2002. Democrat Gray Davis defeated Republican Bill Simon by 5% and was re-elected to a second four-year term as Governor of California. Davis would be recalled less than a year into his next term.The 2002...
, finishing third with 5.3%. In the 1976 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1976
The United States presidential election of 1976 followed the resignation of President Richard Nixon in the wake of the Watergate scandal. It pitted incumbent President Gerald Ford, the Republican candidate, against the relatively unknown former governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter, the Democratic...
he was running for the Socialist Workers Party
Socialist Workers Party (United States)
The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba...
.
Early life
Camejo was a first-generation American of VenezuelaVenezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
n descent. At the time of his birth, his mother was residing in the Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
borough of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Although a "natural born citizen" of the United States (constitutionally eligible for the U.S. Presidency later in life) Camejo spent most of his early childhood in Venezuela.
His parents, Elvia Guanche and Dr. Daniel Camejo Octavio, divorced when their son was seven. Camejo then resided with his mother in the United States and returned to Venezuela during summer holidays to visit family. In later youth Camejo showed talent as a yachtsman, competing in 1960 for Venezuela at the Rome Olympics
1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...
.
Camejo entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, involving himself in soccer and, increasingly, left-wing politics. Later he studied history at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, where he won election to student council. His participation in a protest of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
in 1967 led to his suspension from the university for "using an unauthorized microphone." Then-governor Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
deemed Camejo one of California's ten most dangerous citizens due to his presence at anti-war
Anti-war
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
protests. He also participated in one of the Selma civil rights marches
Selma to Montgomery marches
The Selma to Montgomery marches were three marches in 1965 that marked the political and emotional peak of the American civil rights movement. They grew out of the voting rights movement in Selma, Alabama, launched by local African-Americans who formed the Dallas County Voters League...
.
Political evolution
Initially, Camejo was a member of the Socialist Workers PartySocialist Workers Party (United States)
The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba...
, a Trotskyist
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
party. As a branch organizer, he sought to reorient the SWP towards the student movement. He was the SWP's nominee for President in 1976 and won 90,986 votes, or 0.1%.
While a member of the Socialist Workers Party, Camejo wrote Racism, Revolution, Reaction, 1861-1877. The Rise and Fall of Radical Reconstruction(Pathfinder Press).
The SWP's policy was to turn its members into "proletarians" by having them take jobs in factories and advocate for a worker-based class struggle. By 1980, Camejo came to disagree with this policy in favor of democratic socialism
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
, and the SWP expelled him.
In 1992 Camejo committed $20,000 of his own money toward establishing the Progressive Alliance of Alameda County, an organizational effort that failed to sustain itself. Camejo was quoted in 2002 as claiming that he was a watermelon—green on the outside but red on the inside.
Just over a month after the 2004 election, Camejo was elected as one of California's delegates to the National Committee of the Green Party. At the 2005 Green Party National Convention, Camejo stated that he would not be a candidate for President in 2008.
Camejo wrote a number of articles concerning the divisions evident in the Green Party in the aftermath of the turbulent 2004 national convention, continuing the themes of the Avocado Declaration
Avocado Declaration
Californian politician Peter Camejo initiated the Avocado Declaration in January 2004 as part of the Avocado Education Project to explain why he believed that the Green Party of the United States should adopt a firm and uncompromising identity to promote its values and combat opposition from the...
in opposing attempts to "cozy up" to the newly-formed Progressive Democrats of America
Progressive Democrats of America
The Progressive Democrats of America is a progressive political organization and grassroots political action committee operating inside the United States Democratic Party.-History:...
.
As a candidate for California Governor, Camejo, along with other Green Party candidates and activists Todd Chretien
Todd Chretien
Todd Chretien , an American activist. Chretien is a leading member of the International Socialist Organization. He was the Green Party candidate for United States Senate in California in 2006.-Background:...
, Sarah Knopp, Rachel Odes, Don Bechler, Mehul Thakker
Mehul Thakker
Mehul M. Thakker is the first South Asian person to run for a Statewide office in California as a Green Party candidate. In 2006, he ran for State Treasurer as a Green Party candidate but was defeated....
, Forrest Hill
Forrest Hill (CA Secretary of State candidate)
Forrest Hill is a 2006 Green Party candidate for the California Secretary of State's office, currently occupied by Bruce McPherson. He is an openly gay candidate who supports gay marriage and benefits for domestic partners...
, and Donna Warren, wrote California Under Corporate Rule, which he self-published.
In August 2008 he attended the convention of the Peace and Freedom Party in order to personally endorse Nader's presidential candidacy.
Gubernatorial campaigns
Gray Davis
Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. is an American Democratic politician who served as California's 37th Governor from 1999 until being recalled in 2003...
and Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
in 2002 and 2006, and in the 2003 recall election in which Schwarzenegger replaced Davis as governor.
2002 gubernatorial election
In 2002California gubernatorial election, 2002
The 2002 California gubernatorial election was an election that occurred on November 5, 2002. Democrat Gray Davis defeated Republican Bill Simon by 5% and was re-elected to a second four-year term as Governor of California. Davis would be recalled less than a year into his next term.The 2002...
, Camejo ran uncontested in the California Green Party gubernatorial primary. In the general election, he ran as part of the first full slate of Green candidates for all seven of California's partisan constitutional offices. Camejo lost the election to Governor Gray Davis
Gray Davis
Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. is an American Democratic politician who served as California's 37th Governor from 1999 until being recalled in 2003...
, but he polled 393,036 votes, for 5.3% of the vote, the largest vote total for a third-party
Third party (United States)
The term third party is used in the United States for any and all political parties in the United States other than one of the two major parties . The term can also refer to independent politicians not affiliated with any party at all and to write-in candidates.The United States has had a...
in the California governor's race since 1946
California gubernatorial election, 1946
-References:*...
, when Henry R. Schmidt of the Prohibition Party
Prohibition Party
The Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States best known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages. It is the oldest existing third party in the US. The party was an integral part of the temperance movement...
polled 7.1%. Because the San Francisco Green Party endorsed him, Camejo earned more votes in San Francisco than Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
gubernatorial nominee Bill Simon, a rarity in third-party politics. Camejo's alienation of the San Francisco local resulted in neither an endorsement nor any effort expended towards organizing for him in subsequent elections and he was unable to beat the Republican in San Francisco in 2003 and 2004.
2003 gubernatorial recall election
In 2003, he was the endorsed Green PartyGreen Party of California
The Green Party of California is the California affiliate of the Green Party. The party is a ballot-qualified in California, first established as such in 1991, using the petition method of gaining state recognition....
candidate for governor (although several other Greens appeared on the ballot) in an unprecedented California recall election, in which he polled 242,247 votes for 2.8%, coming in fourth in a field of 135 certified candidates. In a strange preview of the divisions about to erupt on the left in the following year, Camejo first cooperated with, and then competed with, fellow recall candidate Arianna Huffington
Arianna Huffington
Arianna Huffington is a Greek American author and syndicated columnist. She is best known as co-founder of the news website The Huffington Post. A popular conservative commentator in the mid-1990s, she adopted more liberal political beliefs in the late 1990s...
.
2006 gubernatorial election
In 2006
California gubernatorial election, 2006
The 2006 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7, 2006. The primary elections took place on June 6, 2006. The incumbent Republican Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, won re election for his first full term. His main opponent was California State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the...
, Camejo made his third bid for Governor of California against incumbent Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Party nominee Phil Angelides
Phil Angelides
Philip Nicholas "Phil" Angelides is an American politician who was California State Treasurer and the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for Governor of California in the 2006 elections...
. Camejo received 193,553 votes, or 2.3% of the popular vote.
2004 vice-presidential campaign
Camejo was submitted as a candidate in the Green Party of California's March 2, 2004, Presidential Preference Primary. Before the primary, he made it known that he was not planning to run for president and that any delegates pledged to him would not be committed to vote for him after the first round. The former gubernatorial candidate received 33,753 votes (75.9%) of the Green Party membership's support in California, and 72.7% of the votes in all Green Party primary elections.In June 2004, Camejo campaigned for the vice-presidential spot beside two-time Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader as independents, running against the Green Party nominee. They received the endorsement of the Reform Party
Reform Party of the United States of America
The Reform Party of the United States of America is a political party in the United States, founded in 1995 by Ross Perot...
, which gave them ballot access in several states they would not otherwise have. With votes for Nader added in, the Nader/Camejo ticket had what appeared to be an insurmountable 83% of Green voters behind their candidacies going into the Green Party National Convention. However, their lack of contrition about their intentions and Nader's last-minute naming of Camejo as his running mate led to the appearance of a bait and switch
Bait and switch
Bait-and-switch is a form of fraud, most commonly used in retail sales but also applicable to other contexts. First, customers are "baited" by advertising for a product or service at a low price; second, the customers discover that the advertised good is not available and are "switched" to a...
deception, and did not play well with Green delegates. Rejected by the Greens, Nader and Camejo continued their campaign as independent candidates.
Both Nader and Camejo said the main reason they ran in the 2004 election was because there were no other national candidates demanding an immediate withdrawal of American troops from what they believe is an immoral and unconstitutionally pursued War in Iraq (though Green David Cobb
David Cobb
David Keith Cobb is an American activist and was the 2004 presidential candidate of the Green Party of the United States .-Career and political activities:...
, Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
Michael Badnarik
Michael Badnarik
Michael J. Badnarik is an American software engineer, political figure, and former radio talk show host. He was the Libertarian Party nominee for President of the United States in the 2004 elections, and placed fourth in the race, behind independent candidate Ralph Nader...
, Constitution Party
Constitution Party (United States)
The Constitution Party is a paleoconservative political party in the United States. It was founded as the U.S. Taxpayers' Party by Howard Philips in 1991. Phillips was the party's candidate in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 presidential elections...
candidate Michael Peroutka
Michael Peroutka
Michael Anthony Peroutka is a Maryland lawyer, the founder of the Institute on the Constitution. He once held a position in the United States Department of Health and Human Services and was the Constitution Party candidate for president in 2004. He is co-host of The American View radio...
, Socialist Party USA
Socialist Party USA
The Socialist Party USA is a multi-tendency democratic-socialist party in the United States. The party states that it is the rightful continuation and successor to the tradition of the Socialist Party of America, which had lasted from 1901 to 1972.The party is officially committed to left-wing...
candidate Walt Brown
Walt Brown
Walter Frederick Brown is an American politician and was the presidential candidate of the Socialist Party USA in the 2004 elections. Brown became a socialist in 1948. He served as Democratic member of the Oregon State Senate from 1975 to 1987. Brown also served as a Socialist Party of Oregon...
and Socialist Workers Party
Socialist Workers Party (United States)
The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba...
candidate Róger Calero
Róger Calero
Róger Calero is a Nicaraguan American journalist and one of the leaders of the Socialist Workers Party. He was SWP candidate for President of the United States in 2004 and 2008, and for the United States Senate in New York in 2006....
also opposed the war to varying degrees.) However, unlike all of these candidates, because Ralph Nader was regularly invited to appear on mainstream news, the Nader and Camejo team were the only candidates who had a regular voice in the mainstream media arguing for withdrawal.
The Nader/Camejo ticket came in a distant third in the election, polling approximately 460,000 votes, or 0.4% of the vote. Camejo's supporters claimed vindication of their assertion that Nader/Camejo had four-to-one support within the party, as Cobb and running mate Pat LaMarche
Pat LaMarche
Patricia Helen "Pat" LaMarche is an American political figure and activist with the Green Party; she was the party's vice-presidential candidate in the 2004 U.S...
received scarcely a fifth of their support at 119,859 votes (0.1%) a drop of 95% compared to the Green Party's 2000 national ticket. Camejo's experiences on the 2004 campaign are chronicled in Jurgen Vsych
Jürgen Vsych
Jürgen Vsych , born in 1968, is the writer-director-producer of more than 30 films, including Son for Sail, Ophelia Learns to Swim, Tyrannosaurus Tex, and Pay Your Rent, Beethoven, which won the Prince's Trust Award. Her films have been shown in forty-three film festivals in thirty countries....
's book, "What Was Ralph Nader Thinking?"
Family and work
Camejo is survived by his wife, Morella Camejo; stepdaughter Alexandra Baquera, stepson Victor Baquera, and brothers Antonio and Daniel Camejo and Danny Ratner. He last lived in Folsom, CaliforniaFolsom, California
Folsom is a city in Sacramento County, California, United States. Folsom is most commonly known for its famous Folsom Prison. The population was 72,203 at the 2010 census....
, where he was Chief Executive Officer of Progressive Asset Management, a financial investment firm that encourages socially responsible projects.
Camejo is the author of The SRI Advantage: Why Socially Responsible Investing Has Outperformed Financially (ISBN 978-0865714779).
At the time of his death, Camejo was engaged in writing North Star: A Memoir (ISBN 978-1931859929), published in May 2010 by Haymarket Books
Haymarket Books
Haymarket Books is a non-profit left-wing book publisher and distributor. It is published by the Center for Economic Research and Social Change...
.
Conflict within the Green Party
In the run-up to the June 6, 2006, primary elections in his home state, Camejo helped create Green IDEA (now IDEA PAC), a California political action committeePolitical action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
espousing "Independence, Democracy, Empowerment, and Accountability," to support candidates for county councils, the locally elected leadership bodies of the Green Party of California. The IDEA pac is not raising or spending money as of 2010.
Some Greens consider outside intervention in local elections to be a contravention of the Green Ten Key Values of Decentralization and Grassroots Democracy.
Peter Daniels criticized Camejo for "lend[ing] his support to the right-wing effort to depose [California governor Gray] Davis
Gray Davis
Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. is an American Democratic politician who served as California's 37th Governor from 1999 until being recalled in 2003...
" by recall in 2004. However, the Green Party
Green Party of California
The Green Party of California is the California affiliate of the Green Party. The party is a ballot-qualified in California, first established as such in 1991, using the petition method of gaining state recognition....
state convention easily voted to endorse Camejo as a recall replacement candidate.
Death
In January 2007, Camejo announced that he had been diagnosed with early-stage lymphomaLymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
, a cancer that is usually treatable. As of March 2008, after a series of chemotherapy treatments, the cancer was in remission, but in May it was announced that doctors had made a second diagnosis of lymphoma; Camejo died four months later.