Third Parties
Support for Third Parties Declining in U.S. House Races
A Smart Politics analysis of 2006 election results finds support for third parties continuing to drop—for the second straight election cycle since 2002. In 2006, 2.25 percent of votes for U.S. House candidates went to third parties, compared to 2.37…
Read MoreMN: The Decline of Independents?
As previously mentioned at Smart Politics (October 2, 2006), Minnesota has led the Upper Midwest in successful third party candidacies for more than a decade. Third parties spring up for a number of reasons, not the least of which is…
Read MoreThird Parties: Minnesota Leads the Pace in US House Races
Minnesota’s historical success of placing third party candidates on the ballot usually begins and ends with Jesse Ventura. In a report released earlier this summer, the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance also showed Ventura’s legacy in sustaining…
Read MoreWhere Have All the 3rd Party Minnesota Candidates Gone?
In recent years Minnesota has lead all Upper Midwestern states with the highest percentage of successful third party campaigns in state legislative races. While third party candidates still have a significant presence in the Gopher state (especially in state-wide elections),…
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