Third Parties

Essay on Third Parties

In America, we have had a two party system for the longest time, starting with the Federalist and Anti-Federalist. The Democratic Party is the oldest party, and the Republican Party was developed thereafter. However in society, some people felt that neither party best suited their interests, they fell almost in the middle. People decided that maybe a two party system wasn’t the best way, our country was too large and there were too many ideas and opinions that were held. A third party is a political party organized as opposition to the existing parties in a two-party system. They are also created when people are not satisfied with the status quo of one party, which could also be called a splinter party. Even geographic location is a factor. For example Chicago has a Harold Washington Party, in which their main goal is to carry on the legacy of their first African American Mayor, Harold Washington. They bring new ideas to the table, and can even spoil the election by taking enough votes away from one party, causing them to lose. Ralph Nader was a great example of that in 2000 when he took a lot of the votes away from Al Gore. However, these parties do face many more challenges than the Democrats and the Republicans, and it can be almost impossible to win the presidency.

Third Parties have limited success for many reasons. One reason is that in order to just be on the ballot, a third party must receive thousands of petitions whereas Democrats and Republicans automatically are placed on the ballot. This can be difficult because when many people are already tied to a party, drawing voters can be very hard. With any campaign, money is a major factor. You need money to travel around, campaign, pay for people who are working for you. However in order to receive federal funds, the candidate must have received at least 5% of the vote in the last election, and if you fall below that then you are not eligible.

I believe that in order to get a...