July 11 - As the Green Party Presidential nominating convention has begun in Chicago, we're going to take a look at the 4 candidates. They all with vastly different backgrounds, all offering an alternative to the major parties.

Kat Swift is a thirty five year woman from Texas. She joined the Green Party in 1999 after living in Canada.

Her website features a video of her dressed as wonder woman at a San Antonio festival.

"This is what I grew up with. Liberty, justice, you know, fighting for people, you know this was like the American way you know. At that time I thought that meant the people had power and that's what this reminds me of."

Swift says ballot access and representative elections sit at the top of her platform.

"My goal is to promote the Green Party… as well as promoting the values of the party. Because if you talk to most people, people relate to what we're talking about it's just that they're not exposed to the information we're trying to put out there."

In addition to ballot access, Swift, and the rest of the candidates have numerous key issues. But the issue that each prioritizes has shaped their campaign.

Kent Mesplay was a 2004 Green Party presidential candidate, but he was beat out by nominee David Cobb, who went on to receive less than one percent of the vote in the general election. Mesplay, the California air quality regulator continues to focus on what he calls "security through sustainability."

"If we've developed in a manner that allows us to continue on with out too much difficulty once the umbilical cords of power natural gas and water are cut off due to terrorist threat or environmental degradation then we're more secure as a society."

One of the favorites is Jesse Johnson. He's originally from, and has since returned to, West Virginia, where he works as a care giver. But his passion seems to be the environment and opposition to mountain top coal removal, a geologically destructive method of extracting coal from mountains.

Jesse Johnson at a forum earlier this year.

"I support ground zero for climate change - mountain top removal. It's the most devastating action going taking place in the world. The lights that are on in this room, well those lights and the rest of the lights in the rest of the United States, one hour of those lights decapitates one mountain in West Virginia."

And finally, the presumed Green Party nominee, Cynthia McKinney. She's a former Democrat and US Representative of Georgia. She's had a tumultuous political career, loosing her seat in the 2006 primary. But she has emerged as the leader, gaining the most delegates in a 30 state nomination process. She has adopted the Reconstruction platform, the investment of federal support into low income communities, focusing on people of color.

Here she is at an antiwar rally.

"Our country has been hijacked. What about a livable wage for America's workers? What about the right of return for Katrina survivors? What about revealing the Patriot Act, the Secret Evidence Act, the Military Tribunals Act?"

McKinney named her Vice Presidential running mate Wednesday. Rosa Clemente, activist, journalist, and leader in the Hip Hop Caucus. It is the first ever all woman of color ticket in the history of any party.

Ralph Nader did receive some delegates as his name was on the ballot in a few states. He decided to run as an independent.

Report: with Don Debar of Pacifica Radio's WBAI-NY

Now we'll hear from Pacifica station in New York WBAI's Don Debar. He's at the convention and has this to report.