Consumer advocate Ralph Nader, running as an independent candidate in the 2004 presidential election, has firmly rejected calls to withdraw from the race before Election Day. Polling at roughly one to two percent nationally alongside running mate Peter Miguel Camejo, Nader trails far behind his 2000 showing of 2.7 percent.
Democrats blame Nader for Al Gore's 2000 defeat, arguing that his 97,000 votes in Florida, a state decided by just 537 votes, cost Gore the presidency. Party officials have worked aggressively to keep Nader off state ballots, succeeding in limiting him to approximately 30 states. Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe dismissed the campaign as a Republican-backed "charade."
Some former Nader supporters, including actress Susan Sarandon and linguist Noam Chomsky, have joined pressure groups urging him to endorse John Kerry in swing states. Nader has refused, saying his goal is to break the dominance of the two major parties.
Born on 27 February 1934 in Winsted, Connecticut, to Lebanese immigrant parents, Nader studied at Princeton and Harvard. His 1965 book "Unsafe At Any Speed" sparked congressional hearings and landmark auto safety legislation. He later channeled lawsuit winnings from a case against General Motors into consumer advocacy work, building a devoted following known as "Nader's Raiders."
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in October 2004, in its own words.