Politics

Third-party politics will have a Massachusetts flavor this election

June 15, 2016

4 minutes to read

Between Mitt Romney, John Kerry, Michael Dukakis, and John F. Kennedy, Massachusetts has had its share of representatives in modern presidential politics.

And — who knows — the Bay State may yet get some representation in the two major parties in 2016, if speculation that Sen. Elizabeth Warren could be named Hillary Clinton’s running mate bears out.

But even if not, this fall’s election figures to have a Massachusetts flavor — if you look to the third parties. The nation’s two best organized third parties, the Libertarian and Green parties, will both have local names on their tickets.

Additionally, while not participating in the presidential election, another third party in the state will be pushing hard to add members ahead of it.

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein.

Jill Stein

Stein, a physician and former Lexington Town Meeting member, is making her second run for president, and is well on her way to securing the Green Party’s nomination. She also represented the party in 2012, and has twice run as a third-party candidate for governor in Massachusetts.

In 2012, she picked up the most votes ever for a female nominee in a presidential election. That record, of about 470,000 people (good for 0.4 percent of the popular vote), will likely be shattered by Hillary Clinton this fall.

Stein’s positions include a push for 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, establishing a $15 minimum wage, reforming campaign finance, creating a single-payer healthcare system, abolishing student debt, guaranteeing free public university, and more.

Those policies align with some of the priorities of Bernie Sanders, Clinton’s progressive primary opponent, and Stein has made some headlines this spring as she wrote an open letter to the Vermont senator inviting him to join the Green ticket.

In interviews, she has even suggested she could step aside for him to run for president with the party (which would require a change of party rules, she said). She has acknowledged this is a long shot, and says the Green Party has made overtures to the Vermont senator in the past that have gone unanswered.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld.

Bill Weld

The two-term former Massachusetts governor will fill the vice-presidential slot on the Libertarian ticket, having secured the nomination shortly after a man stripteased at the sometimes-unconventional party’s national convention in May. He’ll join Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson, the former New Mexico governor, on the party’s ticket.

Weld’s reputation as governor in the 1990s — socially liberal and economically conservative — has since been worn by his Republican gubernatorial successors, including current Gov. Charlie Baker, who worked in Weld’s administration. Libertarians sometimes define themselves in similar terms.

However, some say it’s an overly simplistic definition. And based on some of his past positions, Weld faced some opposition from Libertarians who questioned his commitment to an ideology that stresses limited government in issues both fiscal and social. At Johnson’s urging, however, a narrow majority of the party’s delegates chose him as the vice-presidential candidate.

A big part of the reason why: With two past governors on the ticket, the party appears more credible and is more likely to gain attention in a year that has seen voter dissatisfaction within both major parties. It’s paid off so far: Johnson and Weld have made several national media appearances, from CNN to The Late Show.

Johnson has also seen support around 10 percent in some polls. If he polls at an average of 15 percent, Johnson would be included in national debates. Weld and Johnson have pointed to that as a goal that could help the party grow short- and long-term.

2014 Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Evan Falchuk.

Evan Falchuk

The former third-party candidate for Massachusetts governor is not running for president. But he figures to be very active leading up to the election, because he has a tall order ahead of him for his United Independent Party.

In 2014, Falchuk achieved 3.3 percent of the gubernatorial vote, good enough to gain official party status in the state. That designation gives the party the ability to raise more money, and allows for party primaries. But to maintain that distinction, the party must count about 43,000 enrolled members by the fall. Today, it counts about 20,000 voters in its ranks.

Falchuk said securing the needed voters is the party’s top priority. Earlier this month, Scott Harshbarger, the former Democratic attorney general and candidate for governor, announced he would join Falchuk’s party specifically for this purpose. Though he’ll probably go back to his former party after the election, boosting the United Independent Party’s membership now would lead to more political choice for voters in the future, he argued.

As its contradictory (and, to some critics, confusing) name entails, the United Independent Party does not have a strict platform and encourages candidates and members from various ideologies. The big exception, Falchuk said, is that the party denounces any form of bigotry.

Instead, the party is a vehicle for voters and prospective office holders who do not consider themselves Republicans or Democrats and are distrustful of establishment politics — a prominent theme in both the Republican and Democratic primaries this year.