Philip Bump: “All the discussion in this country about the need for a third party — that is, an alternative to the Democratic and Republican parties — ignores that we already have a lot of political parties. In fact, in the states that report voter registration by party, 1 out of every 42 voters is already registered with a third party… The 3.3 million third-party members in the reporting states make up 1 in 64 voters nationally.”

Jonathan Bernstein: “As third-party launches go, it’s rare to have one with as little intuitive appeal as that of the Forward Party, Andrew Yang’s latest attempt to draw attention to himself. Yang is joined by former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman and by David Jolly, who was a Republican member of the House of Representatives from Florida for two terms. Whitman and Jolly were moderate Republicans whose party no longer has any use for moderates; Yang ran for president in 2020 and then for mayor of New York City last year without making much of a mark. In addition to a lack of star power, the new party also features no issue agenda.”

“It’s hard to figure out just who exactly the voter pool for this effort might be.”

Tim Miller: “During the Trump era I have often been the rain cloud that washes away the luminescent longings of the third-party dreamers, which isn’t a job I enjoy since many are friends or mentors or folks whose courage in the face of Trumpism I deeply admire.”

“But I soldier on anyway. Trying to convince them they are actually Red Dog Democrats. Or explaining why their idea might accidentally bring about a fascism even though they have nice arms and nicer intentions.”

“But given the boom cycle of new parties, clearly that message is not getting through. So today I wanted to offer another exercise.”

“Dozens of former Republican and Democratic officials announced on Wednesday a new national political third party to appeal to millions of voters they say are dismayed with what they see as America’s dysfunctional two-party system,” Reuters reports.

“The new party, called Forward and whose creation was first reported by Reuters, will initially be co-chaired by former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang and Christine Todd Whitman, the former Republican governor of New Jersey. They hope the party will become a viable alternative to the Republican and Democratic parties that dominate U.S. politics.”

“There’s really three parties in the United States: Republicans, Democrats and Mayors.”

— Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly (I), on CNN.

Andrew Yang, who unsuccessfully sought the presidency and the New York City mayoralty as a Democrat, will launch a third party next month, Politico reports.

Reason: “Joseph Bishop-Henchman resigned Friday as chair of the Libertarian National Committee, after a controversy that began three months ago with provocative tweets, intensified two weeks ago with an attempted schism of the New Hampshire Libertarian Party, and has now turned into a battle for the soul of America’s third-largest political party.”

“A group of Republicans unhappy with the course of the GOP is forming the Renew America Movement organization to recruit and support candidates in the most competitive 2022 House and Senate races,” Bloomberg reports.

“The group plans to raise ‘tens of millions’ of dollars to support or oppose candidates, regardless of party, to defeat ‘radical Republicans’ who support former President Donald Trump in four to five Senate races and about two dozen House races in next year’s midterm elections. It will also recruit candidates to run in GOP primaries or as independents under the Renew America Movement banner.”

“Evan McMullin, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2016 as an independent and is a leader of the effort, said the group wants to push the GOP back to its traditional principles and create a new party if necessary for those conservatives who believe the Republican Party has become too extreme.”

A new Gallup poll finds 62% of U.S. adults say the “parties do such a poor job representing the American people that a third party is needed,” an increase from 57% in September.

Meanwhile, 33% of Americans believe the two major political parties are doing an adequate job representing the public, the smallest percentage expressing this view apart from the 26% reading in October 2013.

Key takeaway: “Independents are usually much more likely than Republicans or Democrats to favor a third political party, but in the current poll, Republicans are nearly as likely as independents to hold this view, 63% to 70%. That represents a dramatic shift for Republicans since last September when 40% favored a third party.”

“A new centrist political party is gaining steam, but records show it’s being largely financed by a single man: a former Philip Morris executive who helped steer the company through the tobacco wars of the 1990s,” Axios reports.

“The Serve America Movement is running candidates in a handful of states, banking on the appeal of a non-ideological party. The outsized financial influence of donor Charles W. Wall underscores the challenge of overcoming extreme partisan rancor with a process-focused political movement.”

A new Gallup poll finds 62% of U.S. adults say the “parties do such a poor job representing the American people that a third party is needed.”

A new The Hill/HarrisX poll finds 64% of registered Republicans say they would be likely to join a new political party started by Donald Trump.