Is it time for another political party in the USA?

[zagor]

Yes, I know there are several existing parties besides the big (little?) two, but they generally have a snowball's chance in Key West of actually winning anything above city council.

Yes, it's time for some real choice in our government

No, that would just benefit the Democrats and skew the system

No, that would just benefit the Republicans and skew the system

[nightdrot]

Was unable to vote as the answers provided really are contextual. In some elections a third party would benefit one or the other of the two major parties. The reason being that American parties are not ideological parties as you tend to see in Europe. Rather they are lose knit coalitions of regional, religious, ethnic, racial, income and other groups that have come together in part by common interests and in part by historical accident.

In the case of the GOP, it is a coalition made up of classical liberals - which Americans call conservatives, libertarians, small and medium sized business, religious and social traditionalists, lower middle and upper middle income earners, farmers, rural and exurban populations, older voters, the South, the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountain West and the state of Alaska, to name the most prominent groups.

On the Democratic side you get, ethnic and religious minorities, middle and high income wage earners, big business and entertainment industries, urban and inner suburban votes, radical liberals - which Americans call liberals. (Note, the term "radical" here does not mean as Americans use it, i. e. "extremist," but rather as the ancient Greeks used the term, meaning "to the root of.") The northeast, the mid-Atlantic, the Pacific coast and the state of Hawaii.

This is how you get a Republican Party that runs from Ted Cruz at one end to Susan Collins at the other. This is how you get a Democratic Party that runs from Joe Manchin at one end to Elizabeth Warren at the other. Quite simply, party identification is not about ideological identity.

Throw in the "first past the post/winner take all" electoral system that rewards the party with the broadest tent. The result is two broad based parties that tend to absorb the popular ideas of smaller parties before those smaller parties get too much of a following. Quite simply, there is no need to vote libertarian, for example, when libertarian ideas tend to get absorbed into the Republicans.

Indeed, that is why many libertarians - see also Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky as Exhibit A - tend to run under the GOP banner. The party can accommodate those ideas and in the process will sweep in other less ideological voters - not to mention campaign volunteers, etc. This broadens the appeal of a narrower ideological viewpoint and facilitates a better chance of winning.

Of course, this hurts smaller and newer parties. Their ideas, as noted, get stolen before the new party really gets off the ground. Such parties then tend to operate on the fringe, pulling in only the very most ideological voters.

In that connection, the big parties tend toward - generally but not always, depending upon the mood of the times - moderation. The various factions within a party must compromise with one another, thereby avoiding extremes.

As to voter turnout. That is paradoxically a sign of civic health. Most Americans do not, in normal circumstances, see politics as playing that big a part in their lives. So they tend to ignore it and not vote.

Indeed, voter turnout tends to rise in bad economic times and wartime, and decline in periods of relative peace, prosperity and stability. This is true not only in the United States.

Not for nothing did voter turnouts in Germany rise to the 80% range in the early 1930s when Hitler came to power. For people generally, the stakes of politics became life or death and so they went to the polls in droves. To be sure, there is generally higher voter turnout in Europe. However, that is because they have more homogeneous populations and government tends to play a bigger role in national life than it does in the United States. (As for example in Europe's much more extensive welfare states.)

In a nutshell, the relatively smaller role of government and the broad non-ideological base of the two parties means that the GOP and the Democratic party tend to monopolize national life. Indeed, the last time a small party - then the Republicans - shot to major status it was because there was a huge existential debate over slavery and impending civil war. Not sure we want to repeat all that.

[ohsheeT]

Whether it be a different party
What we need is for somebody that is not going to be tempted
Somebody who's not going to be bought

And for somebody to stand up and be great because that's who they are and that's what they believe in

Politicians might start out wanting to do the right thing and change things for the better

At the moment they get elected everything changes now they become a party of a bigger party

They become a follower there are rules that they have to follow

The day they move into their new office they are starting to solicit for their next campaign getting money from now bigger donors that have bigger agendas.

There are 15 to 20 secret societies out there that we all know about

The people that belong to these are very wealthy people and have a lot of influence they are actually the people that run the country

They all have their own agendas

You come into office you start soliciting for money for your next election these secret societies will approach you say we'll give you this amount of money but we want this
From you and of course the party there before you says yes take that money because you're going to need it we need you so take that money cuz we want you to re-elected

Those same secret societies go to the other party they work both parties to get what they want

So now you have Democrat and Republicans. That are now bought and they have sold out on us

What we need is somebody that will not be a sellout somebody who will not sell their soul just so they can get re-elected

Because that's what it's all about the politicians that are in office right now have been doing this for so long they know how to get money they know how to get away with doing things and it has put us all in a bind
This currency change thing coming up when the government becomes our bank they own us they own everything we do

That means the secret societies that have that agenda for us own us we have lost every right it's getting tighter and tighter they're squeezing us they just about have their thumb on top of our heads and they're going to get there if we don't put a stop to it
This thing where NATO and America are becoming one that means America's going to no longer be America it means we the people are not free like we used to be all our rights are being stripped from us

What we need is a leader not followers to go into office
What we need is leaders not con men not used car salesman
Tell you anything and everything just so you vote for them

It is a disgrace it is a circus it is a zoo it is a big con that's what our politicians are nowadays it's all a big lie and as long as they can keep up the battle back and forth as long as they have news stations doing their work for them creating dialogue that all the followers out there believe in we're going to be f*****
What we need is each and every single one of us each individually quit being followers look at the whole picture if you are a follower get off the f****** planet because you're going to destroy it just like with the politicians

You can't trust anybody you can't trust our government because there's all hidden agenda they all work for somebody else politicians don't work for we the people anymore they work for secret societies and big corporations that have big bucks and if you don't believe that well tell that to your children when they don't have a life anymore because they're under somebody else's rule

[Anonymous]

in most countries there's loads of different parties but in america there's only two options really, thats so dumb. i think they should change that esp that both options are corrupted as fuck and suck ass

[exitseven]

I think that the Republican party is done and has already been replaced by the MAGA Republican party. The party of the Bushes, Cheney and the other RINOS is dead. America wants President Trump back and there have been many MAGA people that have been elected.

[goaded]

Yes, but the system is skewed towards a two party system. Change to instant-runoff voting for governors and president, and politics will more closely follow the will of the people and not the extremes.

[BarryLiverstone]

Can’t happen anytime soon. The two party system is established in every county in the USA, with fundraising for each party. It would take a generation for a third party to rise up and both parties would squash any national effort to do so

[BuckCannon]

RFK Jr is seriously thinking of running as a Libertarian. If he does, the Dems are screwed.

[OddBeMe]

No…I think our culture would erupt. We are more this or that…1 or 2?

What if Biden won with just 30%? That’s what happens with three or more political parties.

[BigDog1989]

Did you know trump once ran as an independent, and lost. The election system is rigged. He's right, but, AGAINST INDEPENDENTS, not HIM

[disgustingweebtrash]

Yeah I'm sure more voting will help you