“It’s very freeing to not feel bound to a particular party.”
— Rep. Justin Amash (I-MI), in an interview with Time magazine.
Lincoln Chafee Switches Parties Again
“Lincoln Chafee, the Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat who served as Rhode Island’s governor and as a US senator, is now a member of the Libertarian Party,” the Boston Globe reports.
Said Chafee: “I bought property in Wyoming and registered to vote out there in my fourth party — I’m a Libertarian. It’s what I’ve always been — fiscally conservative and socially liberal.”
Watch the Libertarian Party
Joshua Spivak: “Democrats have long complained — with good reason — about the role of the Green Party in depriving Al Gore of the White House in 2000. Nader received 2.74% of the vote (he did not appear in all states), including 1.63 percent in the critical state of Florida that Gore lost by 537 votes. That 2.74% was a strong showing for a third party, but in 2016, the Libertarian Party topped that total.”
“The Libertarian Party had never before received more than 1.1% of the vote in a presidential election. But with New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson and former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld serving as their ticket, the party rocketed to 3.24% of the vote. In two of the critical states that Trump flipped, Michigan and Wisconsin, Johnson topped 3.6%. In Pennsylvania, the third normally Democratic stronghold that voted GOP, Johnson received 2.4%.”
“It is not clear from the polling, but one of the reasons for Trump’s surprise victory was the cratering in support for Johnson in the waning months of the election. In September, he was polling at 9%, which fell off heavily by Election Day.”
Minor Party Vote Was Lowest Since 1982
Ballot Access News: “Although the election returns for 2018 are far from complete, it is possible to know now that the minor party and independent vote for the top office in each state this year is only 2.8%. This is the lowest percentage since 1982, when it was only 1.8%. The highest percentage since World War II was 2010, when it was 5.4%.”
How California Could Bust Up the Two Party System
New York Times: ‘At the start of this year, barely a quarter of registered voters in California said they were Republicans, down from more than a third in 1997. At the same time, the number of voters in the state who say they have no party preference has more than doubled, to about 25 percent. This strongly suggests that most people who have left the Republican Party have not become Democrats and would be open to a center-right political party.”
“If a new California-based party can win votes and legislative seats, it could send a signal to politicians around the country that moderation can be a bankable political strategy, helping to break the vise grip of tribal politics that has turned so much of national politics into a blood sport and made it impossible for Congress to pass substantive bipartisan legislation.”
“If a third party has a chance anywhere in the United States, it’s in California. The state allows the two candidates who get the most votes in a so-called open primary, regardless of party affiliation, to advance to the general election.”
Why Kasich Is Wrong About a Multi-Party System
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Quote of the Day
“We may be beginning to see the end of a two-party system.”
— Gov. John Kasich (R), in an interview on This Week.
The End of the Two-Party System?
David Brooks: “All of this would be survivable if the mentality was going away in a few years. But it is not going away. The underlying conditions of scarcity are only going to get worse. Moreover, the warrior mentality builds on itself. As the right pulverizes the left, the left feels the need to pulverize back, and on and on. This is a generational challenge. Trump will be succeeded by some other warrior.”
“Eventually, conservatives will realize: If we want to preserve conservatism, we can’t be in the same party as the clan warriors. Liberals will realize: If we want to preserve liberalism, we can’t be in the same party as the clan warriors.”
“Eventually, those who cherish the democratic way of life will realize they have to make a much more radical break than any they ever imagined. When this realization dawns the realignment begins. Even with all the structural barriers, we could end up with a European-style multiparty system.”
Big Majority of Millennials Want a Third Party
A new NBC News/GenForward poll finds a strong majority of millennials — 71% — say the Republican and Democratic parties do such a poor job of representing the American people that a third major party is needed.
“Sixty-three percent of millennials disapprove of the way President Trump is handling his job as president. But millennials also hold a variety of political institutions in poor regard, and 65% think the country is on the wrong track overall.”
New Centrist Party Forms in Utah
“Some disaffected Republicans and Democrats who say extreme views are co-opting their parties have decided to carve out a middle ground in Utah politics,” the Deseret News reports.
“Taking a centrist approach, the group announced the formation of the United Utah Party at the state Capitol on Monday… it is working to gather the 2,000 signatures needed to become a registered political party in the state. It hopes to have that done in time get a candidate on the ballot for the 3rd Congressional District special election to replace Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who is stepping down June 30.”
SNL Brutally Mocks Trump’s Press Conference
“I do not want to talk about the pee pee.”
The Third Party Fizzle
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Ultimately, what happened to Gary Johnson of the Libertarian Party and Jill Stein of the Green Party is what happens to most third-party candidates: They fade at the end. Johnson flirted with 10% national support for much of the race but ended up with just 3.3% of the national vote, while Stein got 1% despite reaching nearly 5% in the RealClearPolitics average in early summer.”
Taking the Third Party Candidates Seriously
Third party candidates want to be serious contenders, so John Oliver considers them seriously as potential presidents.
Clinton Seeks to Halt Third Party Drift
“Hillary Clinton and her Democratic allies, unnerved by the tightening presidential race, are making a major push to dissuade disaffected voters from backing third-party candidates, and pouring more energy into Rust Belt states, where Donald Trump is gaining ground,” the New York Times reports.
“With Mrs. Clinton enduring one of the rockiest stretches of her second bid for the presidency, her campaign and affiliated Democratic groups are shifting their focus to those voters, many of them millennials, who recoil at Mr. Trump, her Republican opponent, but now favor the Libertarian nominee, Gary Johnson, or the Green Party candidate, Jill Stein.”
Johnson Will Be On Ballot In Every State
Gary Johnson’s campaign said “that he will be on the ballot in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, marking the first time in two decades a third-party presidential ticket has appeared on every state ballot,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Third Party Candidates Still Not on Ballot in All 50 States
270 to Win: “As of now, Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson is on the ballot in 43 states + DC, with efforts underway to get access in the remaining seven states. Green Party nominee Jill Stein is on the ballot in 35 states + DC.
“Johnson’s ballot access represents 487 of 538 electoral votes, while Stein is at 425.”
Trump Responds to Indie Candidate Speculation
Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol wrote on Twitter over the weekend that there will be an “impressive” independent candidate on the ballot in November with “a strong team and a real chance” to defeat Donald Trump.
Trump responded: “Bill Kristol has been wrong for 2yrs — an embarrassed loser, but if the GOP can’t control their own, then they are not a party. Be tough, R’s!”
He added that an independent candidate would mean conservatives can “say good bye to the Supreme Court.”
Priebus Calls Third Party Effort a ‘Suicide Mission’
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus denounced efforts to draft an independent candidate to run against Donald Trump as a “suicide mission” that could “wreck” the United States for generations, the Washington Post reports.
Said Priebus: “They can try to hijack another party and get on the ballot, but, look, it’s a suicide mission for our country because what it means is that you’re throwing down not just eight years of the White House but potentially 100 years on the Supreme Court and wrecking this country for many generations.”
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