Which third party is an example of a single issue party

After each presentation, vote as a class whether to 1 adopt, 2 modify, or 3 reject each position or "plank. Re-divide the class into small groups, and using the "planks" they have adopted, have each group create a presentation a poster, display, speech, or campaign ad that represents their position.

Assemble all the groups' posters, displays, etc. Debrief the activity by having students compare their party platform to existing party platforms Research the candidates ". Alumni Volunteers The Boardroom Alumni. Curriculum Materials. Add Event. Main Menu Home.

Throughout most of American history, the United States has had two major parties. Today's Democratic Party can trace its origins to Jefferson's old party. Today's Republican Party can trace its origins to the election of Along the way, dozens of third parties have come and gone. Some of these parties were formed to promote a particular cause, such as the Prohibition Party or the Equal Rights party, which demanded the vote for women.

Other third parties, such as the Populists and the Greenbackers, arose for a short period around economic issues. Some third parties, such as the Progressives and the Dixiecrats, splintered off from the Republican and Democratic parties. Platforms and Planks American political parties are organized on a national, state, and local basis. For Discussion 1. Why did George Washington fear political parties? What role do third parties play in the American political system? What is a party platform?

Some third parties are organized entirely around one issue, rather than seeking to enact a broad, fringe ideology. For example, the United States Marijuana Party seeks to end the war on drugs and legalize marijuana.

Though it is unlikely that anyone from the United States Marijuana Party will ever be elected to national office, they seek to raise attention to the issues that they find important and put these issues on the national stage. Third-party candidates exert influence by focusing the election on particular issues and taking votes away from major candidates. Third parties face many obstacles in American politics.

They are usually not even allowed on ballots for due to lack of popular support and signatures to warrant a place under local laws. The problem feeds upon itself as the marginality of third parties means that they are not well known enough to attract national attention, and therefore unable to raise the funds that could promote their politics and make them well known.

Numerically, third parties have won very few elected positions. Since , there have been 31 U. However, third parties do play an important role in national politics. Third parties usually organize and mobilize around a single issue or position, putting pressure on candidates from major political parties to address these issues. Although it is unlikely that a third party candidate will ever garner a plurality of the vote, they can influence the election by taking votes away from a major party candidate.

This was at issue during the election when Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader took votes away from Democrat Al Gore, a situation that some felt contributed to the victory of Republican George W.

Privacy Policy. Skip to main content. Interest Groups. Search for:. Minor Political Parties. The Role of Third Parties American politics operate as a two-party system, and third party candidates do not play a major role in elections.

Learning Objectives Describe how and why third parties form, their key successes, and hurdles to still further success. Third parties have sometimes launched large campaigns and have won public offices, but have not obtained significant or consistent representation in the federal government.

Barriers to third party success include a winner-take-all election format, ballot access laws, debate rules, and the vast resources of the two major parties. Key Terms two-party system : A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, nearly all elected officials are members of one of the two major parties. Ideological Third Parties and Splinter Parties Third party politicians tend to be more ideological than Republicans or Democrats because they do not have to play to the American middle.

Learning Objectives Describe the largest and most significant third parties in American electoral politics. Ralph Nader was one of the more well-known third party candidates, running for office in the election.

Minor parties can invigorate voter interest by promoting a unique or flamboyant candidate and by focusing attention on a contentious issue. He ran again in as a member of the Reform Party and earned nearly eight million votes. Minor-party candidates Ross Perot and Ralph Nader did not come close to winning the presidency, but they did bring media attention to issues during the elections in which they ran.

Minor party candidates can be spoilers in elections by taking away enough votes from a major party candidate to influence the outcome without winning. Minor parties collectively have captured over 5 percent of the popular vote in every presidential election since , although individual minor parties may win only a small percentage of votes.

George W. Minor parties can be classified as enduring, single-issue, candidate-centered, and fusion parties. Some minor parties have existed for a long time and resemble major parties in that they run candidates for local, state, and national offices. They differ from major parties because they are less successful in getting their candidates elected. The Libertarian Party, founded in , is an enduring minor party , which is a type of minor party that has existed for a long time and regularly fields candidates for president and state legislatures.

The Libertarians are unable to compete with the two major parties because they lack a strong organizational foundation and the financial resources to run effective campaigns.

The party also holds an extreme ideological position, which can alienate voters. Libertarians take personal freedoms to the extreme and oppose government intervention in the lives of individuals, support the right to own and bear arms without restriction, and endorse a free and competitive economic market. Sometimes called ideological parties, single-issue minor parties exist to promote a particular policy agenda.

The Green Party is a product of the environmental movement of the s. It advocates environmental issues, such as mandatory recycling and strong regulations on toxic waste.

Candidate-centered minor parties form around candidates who are able to rally support based on their own charisma or message. Fusion minor parties , also known as alliance parties, are enduring or single-issue minor parties that engage in the practice of cross endorsement , backing candidates who appear on a ballot under more than one party label.

Fusion parties routinely endorse candidates who have been nominated by the two major parties and support their causes. Cross endorsement allows minor parties to contribute to the election of a major-party candidate and thus gain access to officeholders. In addition to giving a major-party candidate an additional ballot position, fusion parties provide funding and volunteers.

Only eight states permit the practice of cross endorsement. The most active fusion parties are in New York. Tea Party activists, such as former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, have lambasted the traditional news media for being tied to special interests and irrelevant for average Americans. Instead, Tea Party leaders have embraced social media, preferring to communicate with their supporters through Facebook and Twitter.

Early Tea Party protests against government economic policies received little mainstream press attention. Media coverage increased as the Tea Party staged rowdy protests against government health care reform, and public interest in the movement grew.

Stories by major news organizations focused on the evolution of the Tea Party, its positions on issues, its membership, and its most vocal spokespersons. Tea Party rallies garnered extensive attention from mainstream media as well as political bloggers.

Coverage of the Tea Party differs widely by media outlet. CNN and network news outlets reported that members of Congress had accused Tea Party protestors of anti-Obama racism based on racially charged statements and signs held by some protestors. Fox News, on the other hand, assumed the role of Tea Party cheerleader. Studies of mainstream press coverage of the Tea Party also vary markedly depending on the source. A report by the conservative Media Research Center found that the press first ignored and then disparaged the Tea Party.

Local organizers also believed that news coverage improved over time as reporters interviewed Tea Party activists and supporters and gained firsthand knowledge of the group and its goals.

A minor-party candidate has never been elected president. In the past five decades, minor parties have held few seats in Congress or high-level state offices. Few minor party candidates have won against major-party candidates for governor, state representative, or county commissioner in the past two decades. Minor-party candidates have better luck in the approximately 65, nonpartisan contests for city and town offices and school boards in which no party labels appear on the ballot.

Hundreds of these positions have been filled by minor-party representatives.