The federal Green Party has yet to elect a Member of Parliament, but as the party's Vancouver-Quadra riding association found out Monday night, they're already feeling the pressure to run star candidates.

In an unusual move, party leader Elizabeth May called on members to vote against the party's only declared candidate in Vancouver-Quadra to allow time to recruit more candidates.

Party rules required that the candidate, technology consultant Dan Grice, win a vote over "None of the Above" before being given the nomination.

Liberal MP Stephen Owen's announcement that he would not seek re-election has caused the Greens to peg Quadra as one of their 15-20 winnable ridings.

The day before the nomination meeting, May sent an open letter to the riding association asking for more time to find candidates.

In her letter, May wrote, "a vote for None of the Above or a vote to re-open the nomination process would be appreciated. Either decision would give myself and the national leadership ... the opportunity to secure a high-profile candidate."

In the end, Grice survived the challenge, with the sentiment among party members being that there was no star candidate forthcoming.

Wayne Crooks, who ran the Greens' national campaign in 2004, said May's letter was a "rare" occurrence.

Party member Ruth McLeod had the last word on her colleagues' decision to spurn the possibility of a star candidate.

"It's Green Party tradition to grow our own."