Third Party Idea #1 Abolition of Slavery in the United States:
The 1840/1844 Liberty Party and 1848 Free Soil Party.
As the United States grew and expanded into a continental power, acquiring more territory, a moral dilemma grew. How could a country founded on the concept of freedom and equality for all tolerate allowing large numbers of the people living within its borders to live out their lives in hopeless and irrevocable bondage? Though the Liberty Party first formed in 1840 (solely to oppose slavery), it wasn’t until 1848 that the anti-slavery vote started to make a difference in American Presidential politics. And even in 1860, Republicans were not explicitly against slavery and in favor of abolition, though policies they supported would have led inevitably in that direction (which is why southern voters almost universally rejected the Republican Party). It is a sad comment on early American history that the major political parties did not address this issue with the moral fortitude of these third parties until during or even after the Civil War.
Third Party Idea #2 Prohibition of Alcohol:
The 1892 Prohibition Party.
This is an example of a bad idea first suggested by a third party! Somehow, in a peculiar convergence of political circumstances, this third party idea was adopted by the United States in 1920. Here was the first “war on drugs,” against alcohol. It proved to be such a bad idea that it was unadopted in 1933. Strangely, the Prohibition Party, founded in 1869, still runs candidates for the Presidency. The party’s best result was in 1892, when 264,133 of approximately 12,000,000 voted for Prohibition candidate General John Bidwell
Third Party Idea #3 More Government Involvement in Social Issues:
The 1900-1920
Socialist Party
. (YOU ARE WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Eugene V. Debs was considered a radical in his day. He ran for President from a jail cell in 1920 while serving part of a ten-year sentence for speaking against United States involvement in World War I. Just exactly what were these radical campaign planks he campaigned for? Laws to curb child labor, graduated income tax, giving women the right to vote, direct election of United States Senators (Senators were elected by state legislatures until the 17th Amendment in 1913), unemployment compensation, employer liability laws, employer pensions and a national department of education. Though Debs never came close to winning an electoral vote, his third party platforms probably most epitomize the idea of “third party ideas ahead of their time.”
Third Party Idea #4 The Modern Presidential Campaign:
Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 “Bull Moose” Party.
When Teddy Roosevelt won nine of twelve Republican primaries, and the Republicans still gave the nomination to incumbent President William Howard Taft, Roosevelt stormed out of the convention and formed his own party. His third party run was less important for its ideas on the issues than it was for previewing how candidates would run their campaigns in the Twentieth Century. Roosevelt’s aggressive pursuit of the Presidency, both as a Republican challenger and as a third party candidate, influenced his opponents in the election, Republican Taft and Democrat (and eventual victor) Woodrow Wilson, to get out and campaign as well. Before this election, conventions chose nominees, and Presidential candidates allowed surrogates to do their campaigning. After 1912, primaries became more and more important to the nomination process, and Presidents increasingly sought votes directly from the electorate.
Third Party Idea #5 The New Deal Coalition:
The 1924 Progressive Party.
Robert LaFollette’s ideas offered in the 1924 election would be radical even today, considered much too “socialist.” He believed large corporations had taken over the federal government, so he proposed government ownership of the railroads, public control of the country’s natural resources, and a “house-cleaning” of the executive branch of the federal government. He captured his home state of Wisconsin in the general election, making him one of the most successful third party candidates of the century. He showed that there was vote potential in the coalition of farm, labor and immigrant blocs. Appealing to a similar combination of interests, and softening the radical nature of the LaFollette Progressive agenda, Franklin Roosevelt built his New Deal coalitions, and went on to win an unprecedented four elections in a row.
Third Party Idea #6 The “New Democrat” Twelve Years Early:
John Anderson’s 1980 Independent Candidacy.
Fiscal conservatism coupled with compassion and tolerance on social issues—sounds like a summary of Bill Clinton’s 1992 platform? John Anderson offered this same combination of ideas in his independent candidacy of 1980. Ironically, the candidate who first conceived this idea was a disaffected Republican! Though he made a strong showing in a number of primaries, he didn’t win any. But Anderson offered a moderate alternative for voters who thought Ronald Reagan was too conservative, and Jimmy Carter too liberal (and ineffective as the incumbent President). Anderson’s appeal to moderates allowed him to take 7% of the popular vote despite a late start as an independent candidate, and dwindling resources as the campaign wound up. His success, despite these odds, showed the attractiveness of this combination of ideas, which Bill Clinton offered from an established political party in 1992.
Third Party Idea #7 Balancing the Budget:
Ross Perot’s 1992 Independent Candidacy.
If Ross Perot had not captured such huge poll numbers early in 1992, if he had not captured so much of the public’s attention with his graphs and charts on the eve of the election, and if he hadn’t polled 19% of the votes in the 1992 election, would the United States government have been looking at surpluses by the end of the 1990's? Would the Republicans in Congress and Democratic President Bill Clinton have allowed the government to shut down in 1995 rather than compromise on another deficit budget? Though both parties gave strong lip service to ending deficit spending, neither party seemed willing to make the tough political choices needed to balance the budget, before a short, wealthy man with big ears virtually embarrassed the mainstream parties into taking the issue seriously.
Parties Pushing for change Libertarian The Libertarian Party is the party that really wants government out of peoples’ lives. Their consistent call to end drug prohibition is the Libertarians’ most likely issue to be ahead of its time.
Natural Law PartyThe Natural Law Party’s ideas about reforming health care (emphasizing preventative strategies over cures), along with their common sense “out-of-the-box” thinking on other issues, make them a third party to watch.
Reform party Originally started to give voice to Ross Perot’s candidacy, and to give voice to the growing sentiment that the American government should stop spending more money than it takes in, the party now stands for campaign reform, and as a practical matter, acts as a base from which to launch unique candidacies, like Jesse Ventura’s November 1998 gubernatorial run and victory in Minnesota. Its future may depend on the quality and ideas of the party's future candidacies.
Green PartyThis party gives voice to rising concerns about the environment, and to the idea that government needs to do more to address them. Their environmental concerns, like climate change, are almost certain to be ahead of their time.
More info-
http://www.richardwarrenfield.com
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