Question

1. Identify and explain how two rules of the United States electoral system act as obstacles to minor party candidates winning elections
2. Minor parties make important contributions to the United States political system in spite of the institutional obstacles to their candidates’ success. Please identify a minor party and describe some of the contributions it has made

Answer 1

A majority of the public favors having viable minor-party alternatives in elections.But Why are minor parties unable to be a more formidable presence in American politics?The reasons are:

Winner-Take-All Elections

One major reason for two-party dominance in the United States is the prominence of the single-member district plurality system of elections,also known as winner-take-all elections. Only the highest vote getter in a district in federal and most state legislative elections gains a seat in office. Candidates who have a realistic chance of winning under such a system are almost always associated with the Democratic and Republican parties, which have a strong following among voters and necessary resources, such as funding and volunteers to work in campaigns.

Legal Obstacles

Minor parties are hindered by laws that limit their ability to compete with major parties. Democrats and Republicans in office have created procedures and requirements that make it difficult for minor parties to be listed on ballots in many states. In Montana, Oklahoma, and several other states, a candidate must obtain the signatures of least 5 percent of registered voters to appear on the ballot. A presidential candidate must collect over one million signatures to be listed on the ballot in every state. This is an insurmountable barrier for most minor parties that lack established organizations in many states.

Campaign finance laws work against minor parties. The 1974 Federal Election Campaign Act and its amendments provide for public financing of presidential campaigns. Rarely has a minor-party candidate been able to qualify for federal campaign funds as the party’s candidates must receive 5 percent or more of the popular vote in the general election. Similar barriers hinder state-level minor-party candidates from receiving public funding for taxpayer-financed campaigns, although some states, such as Connecticut, are debating plans to rectify this situation.

Minor parties

Minor parties sometimes have good ideas or discuss about news or different issues. It tend to draw votes away from other candidates to their detriment but on the whole minor parties are pretty much ignored b yeveryone, unless they have a talking head who has enough money to get the face time. And The major parties (Republicans and Democrats) often tend to be very cautious when by proposing new policies, forfear of alienating voters. Established talking points, and hesitate to violate the expectations of those butthe minor parties feel they have less to lose, since the people who voted for their party did so with anexpectation that they would be different and make bolder proposals.

Example of minor party and its contributions

The Prohibition Party (PRO) is a political party in the United States known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages and as an integral part of the temperance movement. It is the oldest existing third party in the United States and the third longest active party.

Although it was never one of the leading parties in the United States, it was once an important force in the Third Party System during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The organization declined following the enactment of Prohibition in the United States, but saw a rise in vote totals following the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1933. However, following World War II it declined with 1948 being the last time its presidential candidate received over 100,000 votes and 1976 being the last time it received over 10,000 votes.

The party's platform has changed over its existence with its platforms throughout the 19th century supporting progressive and populist positions including women's suffrage, equal racial and gender rights, bimetallism, equal pay, and an income tax, but would sometimes only contain positions on alcoholic prohibition when the narrow gauger faction wrote it. During the 20th century the platform became more socially conservative with anti-abortion and religious positions although it also supports environmental stewardship and free education.