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John --
Most of us are pretty tired of hearing about
Donald Trump, and many Americans probably wish he’d permanently retire
to Mar-a-Lago (or prison, depending on your view), and let the U.S.
move on. But today we’re going to use him as a case study for why it’s
so hard for independent candidates to win elected office in the United
States.
Think back to
2016. Trump wasn’t exactly your typical Republican candidate. So why
didn’t he just run as an independent, rather than face down more than
a dozen formidable GOP opponents? Because, for all his bravado, even
he knew that he stood no chance. It’s just too difficult. On the other
hand, by running as a major-party candidate, winner-take-all plurality
voting and closed primaries that only turn out the most extreme
members of the base allowed him to secure the GOP
nomination.
Independent
candidates also don't typically have the financial resources of
major-party candidates, who can tap their respective party’s
established fundraising networks and big donors. As a result,
independent candidates struggle to raise the funds needed to run an
effective campaign. We don’t think of money as a major problem for
Trump, but for the rest of us, who don’t have his generational wealth,
money is a huge obstacle.
Independent candidates usually struggle to earn media coverage,
too. Trump certainly didn’t face this problem, yet even he, with all
of his media attention over a quarter of a century, needed to
essentially hijack one of the two major parties to run a winning
campaign. Now imagine how much more difficult it is for a relatively
unknown independent candidate to get even a tiny fraction of the
coverage without a party machine working at his or her
behest?
Finally, the big
one: ballot access. Every state has its own set of requirements for
independent candidates to appear on the ballot, which can include
collecting a certain number of signatures, paying fees, or meeting
other qualifications. Some of the requirements are downright nutty and
can be nearly impossible for independent candidates to meet. And
that’s the point. The two major parties created these laws
specifically to block competition. There’s no way a guy whose name is
on buildings around the world would tolerate not having his name on
ballots around the country. And he wasn’t about to beg. So of course
he took the major-party route.
So considering all this, the question is: If a man like Donald
Trump, with the massive benefits of his wealth and celebrity status,
couldn’t cut it as an independent candidate, what chance would you
have? Close to nil. That, in a nutshell, is why Forward exists. We
think you deserve a chance.
OTHER NEWS &
VIEWS
Vermont city takes another look
at RCV
Residents of
Burlington, Vermont, will be weighing in on a ranked-choice voting
charter change on its upcoming Town Meeting Day. The proposed measure
would extend the method of voting to all city elections, including the
mayor. Ranked-choice voting has been an ongoing discussion in
Burlington for years. It’s currently in limited use and could be
expanded if voters agree. Two years ago, voters approved the method
for city council elections. It was used for the first time in a
special election in December and will be in play for one council race
on Town Meeting Day. —WCAX
More ranked-choice voting
news:
The America I wish to
see
“If our active duty
military and veterans who served can work together and accomplish a
common purpose, imagine what our country could accomplish if a new
form of democracy—like open primaries—empowered independent voters so
that all voters could work together rather than against one another.
Accomplishing this would not only build democracy in America, but
offer a beacon to other world democracies to continue to build their
own systems to ensure equal voting rights for all the world’s
citizens.” —Jarell Corley in The
Fulcrum
More open primaries
news:
Democracy needs to work to be
defended
“Democracy
usually isn’t under threat where it delivers. Conversely, people are
less likely to rally to defend democracy if they believe the system is
failing them. … It’s not rocket science to solve maddening everyday
problems, and American democracy would be better off if the government
devoted more effort to it. Dangerous would-be autocrats across the
globe have attacked democratic norms, procedures, and institutions.
More people will join the fight for democracy when they feel that
democracy delivers for them. But for many people right now, their
lived experience of democracy feels a lot like being stuck on hold.”
—Brian Klaas in The Atlantic
Why I
chose Forward
“Our group
doesn’t make any sense. I don’t get how a bunch of old guys can meet
with a bunch of young guys, a Black conservative and a Black liberal
can sit in the same room, and all can come to agreeable terms. But I
know this is only because we have been conditioned to think otherwise.
My ragtag group is going to shake the country, and I couldn’t be more
ready.” —Myia “MJ” Hall in The Topline
At Forward, we believe independent
candidates deserve the opportunity to challenge candidates from the
two major parties on equal footing. That means providing the strength
of a party apparatus without the rigid, divisive, top-down ideology
that has had a stranglehold on American politics for far too long.
We’re ready for a new way.
All the
best,
The Forward Party Team
P.S. Do you have any feedback about the
Forwardist? We’d love to hear from you! Contact us
here.
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