Speaking of Reform

Over the past month, presidential candidates George W. Bush and Al Gore have won enough state primaries to secure the nominations of their Republican and Democratic parties. Now the field for the general election in November stands at two.

Or does it? Even as Governor Bush and Vice President Gore prepare to face off this fall, many political experts, journalists, and voters are waiting to find out the nominee of the Reform Party—the latest entry in a long tradition of alternative political parties in this country. What roles have third-party candidates played in presidential races?

The crowded presidential field in 2000 has included more than the usual Republicans and Democrats. Political commentator Pat Buchanan, real estate developer Donald Trump, and Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura have all considered a presidential run—but as the nominee of the Reform Party.

The Reform Party was founded by Texas businessman Ross Perot after he ran as an independent candidate in 1992. He lost that election to Bill Clinton, but collected almost 20 million votes, a record number for someone who was not the Republican or Democratic nominee. Perot ran again in 1996 as the Reform Party's first presidential nominee and received nearly 8 million votes.

• Find out more about the history and positions of the Reform Party.
• You can compare the Reform Party's positions on major issues with those of presidential candidates George W. Bush and Al Gore.

Party Crashing
A number of "third" political parties—including the ones in the table below—were born this past century. Their candidates usually rallied supporters around one or two key positions. None made it to the White House (Theodore Roosevelt had become president eight years before he led the Progressive Party, but he had been elected as a Republican).

• Harvard's Kennedy School of Government has developed an excellent interactive case study in which you can design a third political party, based on the most recent presidential election in 1996.

The Results Are In

Candidates from a range of smaller parties compete in most presidential elections, and they collect small numbers of votes. But occasionally, one of their campaigns makes a large impact. Theodore Roosevelt had already served one term as a Republican president, from 1904 to 1908. He was succeeded from 1908-1912 by William Howard Taft, who was also a Republican. Roosevelt ran again for president in 1912, but lost his party's nomination to sitting president Taft. So Roosevelt ran as the candidate for the new Progressive Party. Political analysts believe that he split the Republican vote with Taft and opened the door for Democrat Woodrow Wilson to win easily.

1912 Presidential Election
Total Votes Cast: 17.0 million
(All numbers are rounded to the first decimal.)

In 1968, Alabama governor George Wallace may have had a similar impact on the Democratic candidacy of Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Wallace had become famous earlier in the decade for opposing Civil Rights reforms in his home state and around the country. His presidential bid came at a time of racial strife in American cities. Wallace won the popular vote in several southern states, victories that were seen as a voter backlash to the Civil Rights initiatives taken by Humphrey and President Lyndon Johnson. The loss of these traditionally Democratic states paved the way for Republican Richard Nixon to win the November election by a small margin.

1968 Presidential Election
Total Votes Cast: 71.2 million

Incumbent president George Bush fell victim to the surprise popularity of H. Ross Perot in the 1992 election. Americans became used to seeing the feisty Perot in half-hour television ads, where he would use colorful charts to demonstrate his ideas on balancing the budget and lowering the trade deficit. At one point during the campaign, Perot led both Bush and Clinton in the polls.

1992 Presidential Election
Total Votes Cast: 104.4 million

Sources: National Archives and Records Administration, Federal Election Commission, The Tampa Tribune.

• Calculate each candidate's percentage of the total vote in these elections.
• Which of the third-party candidates received the highest percentage of the vote?
• In terms of percentage, what was each winning candidate's margin of victory over the nearest contender?

Learn More

• Learn more about Eugene V. Debs and the Socialist movement in the United States.
• Check out a new PBS site on the life and times of former Alabama governor and presidential candidate George Wallace.

Related Resources

• Explore the thinking behind alternative political parties in The Politics of American Discontent : How a New Party Can Make Democracy Work Again by Gordon S. Black.