WORCESTER, Mass. - Presidential candidates part of the Green Party held a meet-and-greet in Worcester Saturday.

The campaign kickoff was hosted at the First Unitarian Church in Worcester by the Massachusetts Green-Rainbow Party. It featured five of the six candidates. The in-person candidates included Dr. Jill Stein, Jasmine Sherman and DaShaun Davis, while Randy Toler and Jorge Zavala appeared remotely. 

The Green Party said they want to support people in ways the two major parties don't. A 2023 report from consulting company Gallup showed support for a third U.S. political party was up to 63%, saying both republicans and democrats were doing a poor job.

Members of the Green Party said they're the most established third party in the country, and have ballot access in 46 states as of 2016. 

"We support the majority of Americans," said Violet Zitola, a member of the party. "Really, it's all about money and politics and the two major parties have supported what we call the top 2%, the top 2% of wealthy people in the United States. The only time you ever hear from a politician is when they want your money and everybody knows that. If you look at campaign ads, they're always looking for money. We're trying to get money out of politics and make it about people. So what we're doing is we're inspiring people to get involved personally, to make local groups together. People can talk with each other. It's about doing in-person politics as opposed it online and running ads on TV."

The Green Party will host a primary debate on May 11th, and delegates from each state will go to the virtual presidential nominating convention in July. Through a petition initiative, they hope to get on the Massachusetts ballot in November.