Major parties rule, third parties are spoilers

There are two major parties because there are only two ends of the political tug-of-war rope

Logos of some “minor” parties through the years. Image from Ozean Media.

There are 142 political parties in America and nine political parties in Oregon. They vary in size and range from the far-left to the far-right. But there are only two major parties whose candidates win most elections. In political tug-of-war, the rope only has two ends.

The Founding Fathers resisted the idea of political parties. Despite that, they created political parties in President Washington’s first term. John Adams and Alexander Hamilton became avowed Federalists. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison formed what became the Democratic-Republicans. Two parties vying for control of the White House and Congress occurred as naturally as gravity.

The major parties have changed names and policies over time. Third parties, even when led by a popular former President like Teddy Roosevelt, never took hold. There simply wasn’t a spare end on the political tug-of-war rope.

As a result, the role of third parties has been as spoilers. Activist Ralph Nader ran as the standard-bearer of the Green Party in 2020 and received almost 100,000 votes in Florida. Democrat Al Gore lost to Republican George W. Bush in Florida by 537 votes, enough to lose the presidency.

Betsy Johnson, with money, a big personality and a nifty campaign logo, is running for governor of Oregon as a nonaffiliated candidate, but essentially as a third-party candidate. She says Republican Christine Drazan and Democrat Tina Kotek are too extreme. If she won, Johnson would be only the second nonaffiliated candidate elected as governor in Oregon. Julius Meier, the wealthy son of the founder of Meier & Frank, was elected governor in 1930 amid the Great Depression – and after the Republican nominee died. Meier didn’t seek re-election.

The most recent Oregon gubernatorial poll shows Drazan and Kotek running neck-and-neck. with Johnson trailing in third. The race isn’t over, but political observers speculate whether Johnson will draw more voters away from Drazan or Kotek.

Calls for a third-party, as expressed in Mark Hester’s column, flow from exasperation when the major parties fail to address significant problems. There are better ways to overcome exasperation than form a new political party. The Civil Rights movement is a good example. Protest marches led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., John Lewis and others forced elected leaders to face the reality that slavery may have ended, but discrimination persisted. Democratic leaders in power responded when protests reached a crescendo. This shift showed how parties evolve, rather than disappear. Earlier generations of Democrats ushered in the Jim Crow era.

At their best, the two major political parties offer policies and candidates that appeal to the widest coalition of constituencies. Over time, the two major parties are like competing suns trying to pull planets into their orbit.

Another force field propping up the two major parties are proprietary primary elections. In most states, only Republicans and Democrats can vote in their respective primaries. Election laws can make it hard for an independent candidate to get on a general election ballot. Johnson needed an extensive and expensive signature drive to qualify for Oregon’s gubernatorial general election.

Washington has shifted to a top-two primary in which anyone can run and everyone can vote.

Typically, Republicans still face Democrats. Washington’s Third Congressional District proves the point. A GOP challenger outpolled a GOP incumbent, but they split Republican votes allowing a Democrat to win the most primary votes. This fall, voters in the Third District will choose between a Republican and a Democrat.

The allure of a third party has blossomed as the number of unaffiliated registered voters climbs. The 1,031,569 non-affiliated registered voters in Oregon outnumber Democrats and Republicans. Only 138,703 voters affiliate with Oregon’s Independent Party.

Oregon’s Motor Voter legislation makes voter registration automatic when you get a vehicle license. You aren’t required to choose a party, and clearly many don’t. That doesn’t mean these registered voters are ripe for the picking by a third party. If you aren’t required to choose, why choose, especially when you’re focused on getting a license plate, not politics. Many unaffiliated voters don’t vote.

My advice for third-party advocates in Oregon is to press for modified primary elections, allowing nonaffiliated voters to make a one-time choice to vote in either the Republican or Democratic primary. That would give all Oregon voters a chance to determine general election candidates.

My other suggestion is to embrace fusion voting whereby two or more parties endorse major party candidates. That’s a way for minor parties to exert influence and for major parties to add more pullers to their side of the political tug-of-war rope.

Gary Conkling has been involved in Oregon politics for more than 50 years as a reporter and editor, congressional staffer and public affairs professional.