Minor party

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Minor party is a political party that play a smaller (in some cases much smaller) role than a major party in a country's politics and elections. The difference between minor and major parties can be so big that the membership total, donations, and the candidates that they are able to produce or attract are very distinct. Some of the minor parties play almost no role in country's politics because of their low recognition, vote and donations. Minor parties often receive very small numbers of votes at an election (to the point of losing any candidate nomination deposit.) The method of voting can also assist or hinder a minor party's chances. For example, in an election for more than one member, the proportional represntation method of voting can be advantageous to a minor party as can preference allocation from one or both of the major parties.

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[edit] Minor Parties in the United States

In the United States minor parties are often known as third parties, of which there are quite a number. Minor parties in the U.S. include the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, and others that have less in influence than the major parties, which since the American Civil War (1861–1865) have been the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. Since 1860, four presidential candidates other than Republicans and Democrats have received over 10% of the popular vote, although one of these was a former president.[1]

[edit] Minor Parties in Australia

Minor Parties in Australia owe much of their success to the proportional representation method of voting. This allows minor parties to achieve at least one quota in the electorate or state and thus gain representation in a parliamentary chamber. Often minor parties have been so successful in gaining such representation that they are able to hold the balance of power in the particular house of the parliament (usually the Australian Senate. Some examples are the Democratic Labor Party (DLP)in the 1960s and early 1970s and the Australian Democrats in the late 1970s and the 1980s.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Third-Party Candidates Can Influence U.S. Presidential Elections, America.gov, 20 August 2007.
    Third-Party Presidential Candidates, 1832-1996
    Third-party candidates who received more than the historical average of 5.6 percent of the popular vote are listed below.
    Year Party Candidate Popular Vote % Electoral Votes Outcome in Next Election
    1996 Reform H. Ross Perot 8.4 0 Did not run; endorsed Republican candidate George W. Bush
    1992 Independent H. Ross Perot 18.9 0 Ran as Reform Party candidate
    1980 Independent John B. Anderson 6.6 0 Did not run
    1968 American Independent George C. Wallace 13.5 46 Won 1.4 percent of the popular vote
    1924 Progressive Robert M. La Follette 16.6 13 Returned to Republican Party
    1912 Progressive ("Bull Moose") Theodore Roosevelt 27.4 88 Returned to Republican Party
    1912 Socialist Eugene V. Debs 6 0 Won 3.2 percent of the popular vote
    1892 Populist James B. Weaver 8.5 22 Endorsed Democratic candidate
    1860 Constitutional Union John Bell 12.6 39 Party dissolved
    1860 Southern Democrats John C. Breckinridge 18.1 72 Party dissolved
    1856 American ("Know-Nothing") Millard Fillmore 21.5 8 Party dissolved
    1848 Free Soil Martin Van Buren 10.1 0 Won 4.9 percent of the vote
    1832 Anti-Masonic William Wirt 7.7 7 Endorsed Whig candidate
    Percentages in bold are those over 10% in elections since 1860.

    (Information derived from the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)


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