Not leaning left or right? Third parties, independents give voters options

By Carol Granizo

Hialeah Gardens High School/Montage

Many young voters have heard the term “third party,” but many say they don’t quite understand its role in the presidential election.

“I do know that there are third parties, but I don’t know what they are,” said Robert Alvarez, 17, a senior at G. Holmes Braddock Senior High in southwest Miami-Dade.

American politics have evolved since the days of the founding fathers who made no mention of political parties in the constitution. According to historical accounts, America’s first president was elected in 1790 without political affiliation.

The first two political parties — the Democratic Republicans and the Federalists — were formed in 1800. The two-party system as we know it today — the Democrats and Republicans – emerged in the 1850s.

The first third party, the Anti-Masonic Party, was established in 1828, and since then many more have formed. The Libertarian Party, the Green Party, the Constitution Party and the Natural Law Party are among the most popular; the Libertarian and Green parties are the largest.

Third parties often are off-shoots of the major parties, and some emphasize a main issue, such as the Green Party, which formed in the mid-1990s as a national party with a focus on the environment.

Although third parties have long existed, they have never been able to compete with the two-party system. During the 2016 and 2020 election cycles third parties such as the Libertarian Party and the Green Party received less than 4% of the national vote.

“The way that elections are structured favors two parties,” said University of Miami political science professor and author Casey Klofstad.

When a third party begins to catch on with the electorate, “it typically gets gobbled up by one of the two existing, major parties,” Klofstad added.

The Libertarian Party, founded in 1971, is a faction of the Republican Party with a political ideology centered on a limited scope of government and individual liberties.

The biggest obstacle for third-party candidates “is people not being able to get into elected office,” said Hector Roos, chair of the Libertarian Party of Miami Dade County. As a gubernatorial candidate in 2022, Roos secured only 0.2% of votes.

While some third parties have members serving in local and state office, the best recognized third-parties float a candidate for president.

Joe Biden and Donald Trump are the two leading candidates in the 2024 presidential election, but Green Party nominee Jill Stein and Libertarian Party nominee Chase Oliver also are vying for the presidency along with independent candidates Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Cornel West.

Some political scientists note that third parties historically appeal to young people, many of whom who do not lean Democrat or Republican.

Alexis Wilson, an atmospheric scientist in Miami, supports the Green Party even though she thinks there is little impact a vote for a third party can have.

“I don’t consider it, not voting at all, but I do feel like it is kind of throwing it away a little bit,” she said.

Despite election failures of third-party candidates, there is a growing sentiment among American voters that a third party is needed, according to a 2023 Gallup poll, which found that support for a third U.S. political party is up to 63%.

“I would say we do ourselves a bit of a disservice because we only have two major parties,” said Keauna Gregory, political organizer and founder of Changemakers Strategies, a political consulting firm based in Georgia.

Aida Mackic, chief program and strategy officer for Scale for Change, a political field consulting firm based in Washington D.C., agrees.

“I think there’s a loss of trust in the values that the parties seek to represent,” Mackic said.

Roos, the Libertarian, said change, not the success of a third party, may be the immediate goal.

“Any change that can latch on, grows,” he said.