A new NBC News poll finds 44% of registered voters say they are willing to consider supporting a third-party or independent presidential candidate if President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are the two major party nominees in 2024 — and the group includes more Democrats than Republicans.
However, a majority of all registered voters, 53%, say they wouldn’t consider voting for another candidate in a matchup between Biden and Trump next year.
Politico: “No Labels’ bid to run a third party presidential candidate in 2024 has sparked a number of questions about political motivations. Chief among them: Who, exactly, is paying for this thing?”
“The centrist group consists of a constellation of entities, some of which disclose donor names. But the main one is a nonprofit which, unlike political parties, does not have to reveal the names of its funders. And in an interview with Politico, its CEO, Nancy Jacobson, declined to do so, saying simply that it was a ‘mixed’ pool of individual contributors including “people that want to help our country.”
“The bipartisan political group No Labels is stepping up a well-funded effort to field a ‘unity ticket’ for the 2024 presidential race, prompting fierce resistance from even some of its closest allies who fear handing the White House back to Donald Trump,” the New York Times reports.
“At the top of the list of potential candidates is Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat who has been a headache to his party and could bleed support from President Biden in areas crucial to his re-election.”
“The centrist group’s leadership was in New York this week raising part of the money — around $70 million — that it says it needs to help with nationwide ballot access efforts.”
“Maine’s secretary of state has formally warned a national organization that is trying to form a new political party in all 50 states against mischaracterizing its intentions to prospective voters,” the Portland Press Herald reports.
“Shenna Bellows sent a cease-and-desist letter Thursday to Nicholas Connors, director of ballot access for the group No Labels, expressing concerns that their efforts have confused voters who think they are merely signing a petition but are enrolling in a new party.”
New Republic: “Years before megadonor Harlan Crow was reading ProPublica stories about his close ties with Clarence Thomas, often seen as maybe the most partisan justice on the Supreme Court, he was doling out donations and referring friends to No Labels, the outside group that claims to offer an avowedly non-partisan approach to politics.”
Seth Masket writes that the push for a “bipartisan unity ticket” by No Labels is based on a fundamental misreading of American politics — just because people express dissatisfaction with the major parties and say they want more options doesn’t mean they’ll vote for another option.
The problem is that no one can define the “common-sense, moderate, independent platform” this effort promises.
Popular Information: “No Labels said that it has raised $70 million for the effort and will seek to secure a line on the ballot in all 50 states. It has ‘already gained ballot access in Arizona, Colorado, Alaska and Oregon.'”
“Where did No Labels get all this money? The group has not revealed any of its donors. It’s an odd position for an organization dedicated to restoring ‘trust’ in institutions.”
Washington Post: “Uncertainty over the $70 million No Labels ballot effort has set off major alarm bells in Democratic circles and raised concerns among Republican strategists, who have launched their own research projects to figure out the potential impacts.”
“The Arizona Democratic Party will file a lawsuit Thursday against the state’s top election administrator and No Labels, seeking to reverse the moderate group’s recognition as a political party for the 2024 elections,” the Washington Post reports.
“The lawsuit, in state court in Phoenix, reflects growing concern in Democratic circles that a No Labels third-party ticket in 2024 will jeopardize the reelection hopes of President Biden and make it harder for Democrats to maintain control of the Senate.”
No Labels, an advocacy group laying the groundwork for a unity ticket presidential campaign in 2024, is in turmoil, Politico reports.
“Interviews with 14 former employees—including five who left in the last few months—and four other people familiar with No Labels reveals a cutthroat culture, one where staffers are routinely fired or pushed out, have little trust in management, and believe the workplace environment can be difficult for minority and female colleagues.”
“The internal discord threatens to hamper the well-financed plans that the group has for the next election.”
Andrew Yang was interviewed on CNN by Jim Acosta about his new third party:
ACOSTA: : How does the Forward Party feel about Roe v Wade?
YANG: The Forward Party has a—not left or right- but “forward” stance on even the most divisive and contentious issues.
ACOSTA: What does that even mean?
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.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.