NOV 9 WHO ARE THE MOST SUCCESSFUL THIRD PARTY CANDIDATES?

NOV 9  WHO ARE THE MOST SUCCESSFUL THIRD PARTY CANDIDATES?

The final results from Tuesday's midterm elections are in. While the Senate remained mostly the same, the House of Representatives saw a host of changes. It was a banner election for women, minorities and Muslims, who smashed through stereotypes and stigmas to claim new seats. However, there was one group who was completely shut out of the House once again: Third Party candidates. Of the 435 seats in the House, absolutely zero are from political parties other than Democrat or Republican! This got us here at the DUNER BLOG wondering: What are the most successful third parties in US History?

WHIG. By far the most accomplished party, the Whigs dominated US politics from 1840 to 1860. They won two presidential elections in 1840 and 1848. Although the portraits of William Henry Harrison and Zachary Taylor aren't found on any US bills, they succeeded in forwarding important legislation. With compromise legend Henry Clay in Congress, they passed numerous Anti-Slavery laws. Also noteworthy for the Whigs was a young Representative from Illinois named Abraham Lincoln. He, like most other Whigs, joined the new Republican party when the party disbanded in 1860.

SOCIALIST. Although the slightest mention of the word 'Socialist' is political suicide today, in the early 1900's Socialism was a respected movement. They flourished on the mayoral level. Milwaukee alone had four Socialist mayors between 1910 and 1956. On the national front...however...Socialist candidates sputtered. Eugene V. Debs ran for president four times, peaking with 6% of the popular vote in 1912. Sadly, the unpopular rise of Soviet Socialism proved fatal for the party. Insane notions like equitable wealth distribution would disappear from the American political landscape forever.

GREEN. Another party with a brief moment in the spotlight was the 'earth-first' Greens. Founded by Petra Kelly in Germany in the 1980's, they championed the idea of a politician with the environment as their top priority. The movement quickly spread to the US. It peaked in the year 2000 when Ralph Nader received 3% of the vote in his second run for president. Dems blamed the Greens for Al Gore's defeat, further complicating the purpose of a third party.

PROGRESSIVE. In 1910, once close buddies Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft got in a nasty spat. The result was Teddy left the Republicans and formed a new political party called the Progressives. (or the 'Bull Moose.') The two parties had similar platforms, but Progressives were adamant about getting lobbyists out of Congress. (What an outrageous idea!) Although they garnered a handful of Congressmen, the Progressive movement fizzled out after Roosevelt retired from politics in 1920.

LIBERTARIAN. This party began in 1971 in the living room of David Nolan. The Coloradan was sick and tired of big government spending his money. Soon, his grumblings gained momentum and the Libertarian Party was born. Their platform is to shrink government, broaden civil rights and to stop fighting expensive wars in countries most Americans have never heard of. It's currently the largest third party in the country, with half a million registered voters. But...as we said... none of them are in Congress.