{"id":758887,"date":"2019-11-23T08:38:41","date_gmt":"2019-11-23T13:38:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=758887"},"modified":"2019-11-23T08:43:09","modified_gmt":"2019-11-23T13:43:09","slug":"will-2020-mark-the-rise-of-a-vegan-voting-bloc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=758887","title":{"rendered":"A WORLD VEGAN PARTY: Will 2020 Mark the Rise of a Vegan Voting Bloc?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
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As more voters embrace veganism, reduce their meat consumption, or take an interest in animal welfare, it\u2019s highly plausible that the politicians who adopt platforms around these issues will grow.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\n

NADRA NITTLE:<\/strong> ‘With vegan restaurants on the rise, sales of vegan foods outpacing other cuisine, and young adults flocking to plant-based diets, 2019 has been deemed the \u201cyear of the vegan,\u201d at least by the media. Forbes, The Economist, and The Guardian all agree that veganism has gone mainstream\u2014and as with most things this year, the political realm is following suit. Plant-based diets have come up multiple times during the 2020 US presidential race… For the first time in U.S. history, being a meat-free politician isn\u2019t necessarily a liability.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThat a vegan diet has become a respectable topic is a sign for progress,\u201d said Matthew Liebman, director of litigation for the Animal Legal Defense Fund. \u201cMost people don\u2019t think it\u2019s something to be concerned about, that it doesn\u2019t make a candidate ineligible to be president. I think 10, 12 years ago, it would have undercut their standing.\u201d A recent HuffPost\/YouGov poll found that 74 percent of registered voters say a candidate\u2019s veganism doesn\u2019t matter to them. And only 12 percent of respondents say they would not consider voting for a vegan president…<\/em><\/p>\n

Vegans don\u2019t yet have the focused attention of politicians in the same way that, say, African Americans or evangelical Christians do. But as more voters embrace veganism, reduce their meat consumption, or take an interest in animal welfare, it\u2019s highly plausible that the politicians who adopt platforms around these issues will grow. \u201cI would love to see a vegan voting bloc that candidates are courting,\u201d Mercy for Animals\u2019 Diane May said. \u201cIt\u2019s definitely something that could happen in the next couple of election cycles.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The fact that the Humane Party, a political party for vegans and animal rights advocates, exists may be the best indicator that such a voting bloc could emerge in the not-so-distant future. Formed in 2009, the Humane Party has hundreds of members, mostly active in California and New York. The party only supports candidates who have committed to \u201chumane\u201d values personally and politically. \u201cThe party is still largely an ideal, a group of likeminded people,\u201d said Robert Mason, a Humane Party presidential primary candidate. He would like to see vegan politicians in major parties speak more openly about their beliefs…<\/em><\/p>\n

Even if a presidential candidate became a vegan evangelist of sorts, promoting the lifestyle to the public, Mason said that the vegan community may not rally behind one particular political figure. \u201cThe vegan community is so disjointed; it\u2019s hard to pull everyone together,\u201d Mason said. What unites the community, however, is the concept of \u201cnon-harming,\u201d he added. \u201cIt\u2019s not just about animal equality and animal rights,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt\u2019s about creating a positive society. I think a move towards veganism as an ideal forces people to be a lot more forward-thinking”.’<\/em>\u00a0 SOURCE…<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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