Independent Party and four-time presidential candidate Ralph Nader did a whirlwind 21-stop campaign tour of Massachusetts last Sunday that included the Waltham farmers market where he conveyed his support for local farmers and commitment to represent the people, not corporations. His appearance attracted spectators and supporters from Brandeis and the Waltham area.

"This is my native New England at its best," Nader said, referring to the produce vendors whose tents were set up in a parking lot on the corner of Main and Moody Streets.

A group of about 60 shoppers and pedestrians crowded into the parking lot of Sovereign Bank to hear the 74-year-old candidate as the wind whipped around them before he headed to his next stop in Watertown.

Austin Case, who is on the event staff for Nader's campaign, said one objective of the tour is to create awareness of a candidate whom people do not even know is running for president of the?United States.

Nader is "so full of life and cares so deeply about the people," Case said.

Somerville residents and Nader supporters Shanna Garvey and Ted Forgit were only planning on seeing Nader in one location, but were so inspired by him that they found themselves at their third stop in Waltham with the intent to follow him to a few more locations.

Massachusetts is a good place for Nader to campaign, Garvey and Forgit said. It is not a swing state, Forgit said, so voting for Nader will not take votes away from Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama, who might have a better chance of winning. Campaigning here allows other candidates the chance to make their voices heard.

Derrick J. Horton '11 is not a Nader supporter, but said Nader "works for the interests of the American people." He cited Nader's work in exposing car manufacturers' resistance to introducing certain safety features like seatbelts during the 1960s as an example of Nader having "his heart and mind in the right place."

In his speech, Nader said corrupt Republicans and Democrats subordinated the government to corporate supremacists rather than delivering necessary social benefits like universal healthcare and decent wages to all American people.

"If [the Republican and Democratic candidates] don't shape up the people are going to ship them out," he said.

Addressing the vendors at the market, Nader stressed the importance of eating locally grown foods and supporting farmers. He said the U.S. needs legislation to create supply-demand based competition and reduce the power of agrobusiness.

"We're heading for a major disaster," Nader said in terms of shipping improperly inspected foods from other parts of the country and overseas.

Kevin Conzo of Zachary Dean's Coffee Bean Company, who sold coffee at the market, agreed with Nader that it is important to buy locally made goods to help the economy and to support ourselves as Americans. He said the economy will continue to do poorly if Americans rely on buying cheap products from large corporations.

After the speech, Guy Rossman '10 said he is considering voting for Nader in Massachusetts and values the candidate for being "on target" and not swaying from his views on holding corporations accountable for their actions.

Stephanie Marshak '10 and Trude Renwick '10 said they were in Waltham and happened to see Nader exit the area but missed his speech.

Nader is an "interesting figure in America today," Marshak said. She said his passion for environmentalism is interesting and that he has raised a lot of awareness about the movement, but said she does not plan to vote for him in the election.

As he left for Watertown, Nader told the Justice that college-aged students are spending too much time "looking at screens" when they should be politically active like their forbears in the 1960s because they can have a great impact on the elections.