Third Parties to Consider

Constitution Party

The Constitution Party (formerly the Taxpayers Party) offers a home to voters to the right of the Republicans. They call for restoring our constitutional republic and acknowledging the Christian basis of American society and government. This includes allowing organized prayer in public schools and the display of the Ten Commandments in public buildings. Like the Libertarian Party (below), they want to get government out of education and the charity business. Their 2004 presidential candidate is Michael Peroutka, a Maryland attorney and reformed bureaucrat. His running mate is Baptist pastor and talk show host Chuck Baldwin of Florida.

Green Party

The Green Party lies to the left of the Democrats. Originally formed to advance an environmental agenda, their political focus today is as much or more involved with opposition to the strong political and economic power of corporations. Their 2004 presidential candidate is David Cobb, a Texas attorney, whose running mate is historian and talk show host Pat LaMarche of Maine. On economic and social issues, the Green Party platform is similar to that of the Socialist Party (see below). A major controversy is whether the Green Party is just playing the role of a Democrat spoiler in 2004, or whether it will avoid that role by soft-pedaling its campaign in battleground states.

Consumer crusader Ralph Nader, who ran as the Green Party's presidential candidate in 2000, is running this year as an independent. His running mate is financier and businessman Peter Miguel Camejo. Nader's campaign has been endorsed by the Reform Party (determined by party officers, not convention delegates), listed below. A major focus of the campaign is peace (especially getting the U.S. out of Iraq). Socially and economically, Nader's positions are similar to those of his Green Party "alma mater" or the Socialist Party. Nader's greatest challenge is to get on enough state ballots that his campaign can be truly national in scope ... and have at least a mathematical chance of earning enough electoral votes to gain the White House.

Libertarian Party

The Libertarian Party is of neither the left nor the right. Its platform is often characterized as "liberal on social issues and conservative on economic issues," meaning that government has no business restricting the peaceful and honest choices people make in either area. That platform is based on the idea of self-ownership: that individuals are responsible for their own lives, and government control should be limited to protecting individual rights. Their 2004 presidential candidate is Michael Badnarik, a Texas computer consultant and constitutional scholar, whose running mate is Richard Campagna, an attorney, international businessman, and university instructor from Iowa. The LP is expected to be on the ballot in all (or nearly all) 50 states.

Natural Law Party

The Natural Law Party is running no presidential candidate in 2004. The party has a bit of a "New Age" quality, stressing transcendental meditation as a vehicle for solving world problems. Their candidate in 2000, physicist Dr. John Hagelin, recently announced the establishment of the U.S. Peace Government -- a "complementary" government intended to govern "from the crucial level of collective consciousness" without directly competing with the Washington establishment.

Reform Party

The Reform Party is not running its own presidential candidate in 2004, but has endorsed Independent Ralph Nader listed above. Originally founded to support the candidacy of Ross Perot for president in 1992, it had remarkable success that year. Its most recent (and even more remarkable) success was in electing Jesse Ventura as Governor of Minnesota. In its short existence, the Reform Party's platform has dealt more with how government should run internally -- with less corruption, more accountability, and more direct input from the people -- than with "desired outcome" issues. It has, however, made a name for itself advocating for the protection of American jobs.

Socialist Party

The Socialist Party lies to the left of the Democrats, and maybe even left of the Green Party. Like the Libertarian Party, they are based on principle (not the principle of self-ownership, but the principle that the individual is subordinate to society). Their 2004 presidential candidate is Walt Brown, with running mate Mary Alice Herbert (no bios available on their website). Though they have elected very few people to office, the Socialists may count as the most successful party in America. Virtually their entire platform of 1920 has been implemented by Democrats (and recently, Republicans) who gave in to their relentless pressure.

After reading these short descriptions of the parties, we recommend that you visit the following resources for voters:

SelectSmart.com's 2004 American Presidential Candidate Selector questionnaire. It's a pretty good way to see, based on your responses to questions on political issues, which party best matches up with your beliefs. NOTE to Mac Users: you should follow this link instead for a Mac-friendly version of the questionnaire.	Also, take the world-famous World's Smallest Political Quiz and find out!
For entertainment, here's a mock election -- really a poll of sorts -- that is catching on in the online community. You should be aware that results are probably considerably skewed from overall statistical voter norms by the fact that the online community has a strong Libertarian bias.

VoteBuddy^TM, No!Buddy^TM, and any associated logos are trademarks owned by Kent Van Cleave, who asks everyone not to set up a similar type of organization or service using any name that might be confused with "VoteBuddy."

If you would like to run your own VoteBuddy operation, franchises (under revokable licensing) will be liberally awarded to individuals or organizations who would like to encourage "Creative Vote Liberation" in their states and communities. After all, our mission is to break the two-party monopoly, and your help is very welcome! For information on VoteBuddy franchises, send email to Kent Van Cleave at (sorry -- no link provided as a spam-avoidance measure; you'll have to type the address yourself) info(at)votebuddy(dot)org. For other questions, visit our FAQ page.

VoteBuddy and Kent Van Cleave make no warranties concerning the results anyone might expect or desire from VoteBuddy participation -- especially concerning the performance of individuals who are paired as Vote Buddies. It is the responsibility of each participant to establish a basis for trust in the Vote Buddy s/he chooses. By voluntarily following the VoteBuddy strategy for freeing your vote, you agree to hold VoteBuddy and Kent Van Cleave harmless for any negative consequences that might be attributed to the VoteBuddy program or anyone connected with it. Hey, we'll do our best ... but we aren't gonna be lawsuit bait for anybody!

Finally, neither VoteBuddy nor Kent Van Cleave advocate the violation of any constitutional laws with this proposal. Anyone who contemplates pursuing this strategy should find out whether their state and local governments recognize their right to pursue any peaceful and honest means that will empower them to cast their votes according to their consciences. Where your freedom is prohibited by law, we can't advise you to resist your masters; that's a wholly personal choice.