Can We Have A Third Party?

[This post was inspired by a comment from a friend left on July 12th's post "What If I Don't Vote? (Part 1)"]

Answer: No, if we are being asked if three parties can have a REAL share in governmental power.

       Some people notice that countries like Germany and Israel have several different political parties that make a difference in governance, and then they notice the U.S.A. has only two: the Democrats and Republicans. This begs the question, "Can there be a third option?" 


       The American political system is not designed in such a way to make this possible. The Founding Fathers did not want us to have ANY political parties - period - let alone three! It is theoretically possible that a new party could emerge and supplant either the Democratic or Republican party but, like the Dark Lords of the Sith (for my Star Wars friends), there can only be two.


       So, if the Founders didn't want any, how did we end up with two? Unlike the governments of Germany and Israel, our system does not allocate seats in Congress to political parties. Since seats are up-for-grabs, you end up with two sides of a coin. One side is the people who WON those seats. The other side is the people who LOST in the election for those seats. The people who WON are the ones with an ideological bent that was popular with the electors at the time of their election. The people who LOST are the ones who have to wait until their time is ripe. This circumstance played itself out as soon as our federal government under the U.S. Constitution took effect in 1789.


       What quickly played out under the Founders' noses was a situation where there was a RULING faction and an OPPOSITION faction. The initial ruling faction was the Federalists and the initial opposing faction was the Jefferson-Republicans. After a few elections, these two factions had to switch places; the Jeff-Reps became the rulers and the Federalists became the opposition. Those two factions no longer exist. Over time, they morphed into larger, more organized entities that came to be called political parties. 


       As I mentioned earlier, there is always two. Initially, it was the Federalists vs. the Jefferson - Republicans. Later, it was the Whigs vs. the Democrats and, finally, the Republicans vs. the Democrats. Over time a new one supplants an old one (like how Darth Vader supplanted Count Dooku, or how Luke Skywalker would have supplanted either Darth Vader or Emperor Palpatine if he had turned to the dark side) but there can never be more than two sharing power at a time.


       But Jason, what about parties like Ralph Nader's Green Party or the various socialist parties that exist or once existed? Those parties exist because they have as much legal right to exist as the Republicans or Democrats, but they do not have enough strength in numbers or organization to supplant the big two. Small parties usually focus on limited and specific goals. The Green Party promoted fund-raising for, and awareness of, environmental causes.


       Okay, well, what of the various 'independent' officials in Congress? Do they make a difference? Their biggest handicap is that they are 'independent.'  Often, we hear about independents who are outcasts from one of the big two. Senator Joe Lieberman was a life-long Democrat, but lost his party's renomination to a primary challenger in 2006 (possibly because he sided with Republican  causes so many times over the years. In fact, though he serves as an Independent, Lieberman is still a registered Democrat.) He had already been in the Senate for so long that he had enough popularity with Connecticut voters to keep his seat.

       Congressional Independents make the most difference during tough votes that require compromises between the two parties. Independents are in a position to 'cross the aisle' and reconcile the leaders of both sides to come to a compromise.


       For all these various ways, the American political system is a two-party system and will never become a multi-party system. Small parties and various grass-roots movements spring up from time to time and exert an influence on one or both of the big two. Currently, the Tea Party Patriots (more of a movement than a party) exerts a strong influence on the Republican party. A century ago, the big two were simultaneously influenced by the Progressive movement. This is perhaps the best way small parties and movements can influence major policy.




Jason A.




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