Image - Tara Winstead
The United States’ politics have historically been dominated by two parties that represent conservative and liberal views from the public; right and left-wing views. These are the Republican and Democratic parties, respectively. Since 1866, all U.S Presidents were members of these parties while in office.
The duopoly of U.S politics comes from their electoral system, the first past the post system (FPTP). In FPTP, the winner is based on who has the most votes, even if it’s not a majority. This naturally favours larger parties because they have a better chance of winning outright, causing voters to compromise between the major parties even if they do not confidently represent their views. A 3rd party vote is seen as a waste.
Considering the neglect 3rd parties face, what can they do to succeed? When assessing how voters express their views within the FPTP, there’s always been a recognizable path to success, and that’s through presenting as an alternative to mainstream politics.
To understand the hidden opportunity 3rd parties have, it’s important to understand the barriers that they face because those opportunities are contingent on their institutional disadvantages.
The most apparent one is the FPTP system itself. Under FPTP 3rd parties are disincentivised to run unless they can win the seat, which is virtually impossible. In contrast, majority of European countries use some form of proportional representation. For example, the Dutch animal rights party won 2.25% of the votes in the 2023 election, resulting in having 3 out of 150 seats at the House of Representatives, and 3 out of 75 seats in the Senate. In America this would be seen as a failure because there’d be nothing to show voters and sponsors after all the time and effort spent on campaigning. But in the Netherlands the PvdD is successful and is even the fastest growing political party despite their small, and single-issue status.
This makes running Congressional and Senate seats viable for 3rd parties, as winning 5% of votes would mean representing 5% of the government. As of May 2024, the Libertarian party, the 3rd largest American party, only holds 1 seat in the Senate, and this is their first major win since 2000.
FPTP also influences the media's portrayal and public perception of political parties. As the American public is overwhelmingly dominated by Republicans and Democrats, neither of them have an incentive to align with 3rd party politicians and voters even to weaken the opposing party, as any threat to the duopoly weakens their stranglehold on domestic politics.
To illustrate, in multiple states, independent candidates must collect on average more than 30,000 votes and in less days compared to organizations that want to qualify as a minor party. Conversely, Democratic and Republican candidates automatically qualify on the ballot because of their party’s previous success in elections.
The cumulative success of the major parties gives them financial and social advantages. News media sources are heavily split among partisan viewership and most of them are owned by a concentrated group of private billionaires, or wealthy organizations whose interests may lean Republican, like Rupert Murdoch – the owner of Fox News, Wall Street Journal and News Corp, or Democratic, like Comcast owns NBC/MSNBC and Disney owns ABC. This media dominance creates a self-reinforcing cycle of financial and promotional support, marginalizing third parties. Without this access and resources, they remain virtually invisible, systematically ignored or co-opted by the political establishment.
Regardless, 3rd parties have always discovered ways to succeed, and that is through presenting themselves as fundamentally different to mainstream politics.
3rd parties can succeed within FPTP by building an identifiable core fanbase. Historically, they found most success when voters are discontent with the major parties.
Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 Progressive Party run won over 27% of the popular vote and six states, because he appealed for bold yet distinct causes; notably a democratic welfare state and a federal minimum wage. George Wallace’s 1968 American Independent Party campaign 13.5% of the popular vote won five states with a segregationist platform. His platform, though controversial and legally overturned, resonated with voters who felt ignored by the political mainstream.
Ross Perot, as an independent and later founding the Reform Party, captured 18.9% of the popular vote in 1992, influencing deficit reduction policies, gun control restrictions and economic nationalism. Since 1892, these were the highest percentage of votes a 3rd party has gotten and, by analysing the contemporary environment, it’s clear that voters felt that these parties focused on distinct issues that weren’t adequately addressed in the mainstream.
Even though the parties did not win a seat, rather than viewing this as a loss the perception needs to be reframed as a strategic success. Persistent focus on distinct issues can force the major parties to adopt their policies in the way they desire, not only preventing them from being undermined but shifting the Overton window in their favour, making it easier to grow.
Additionally, being a single-issue party focusing on local elections can generate a new support base. Though single issue can be meant literally, I’m defining it as a core issue that the party is known for. Much like how the Dutch animal rights party, which focuses on animal rights, has become a left wing ecological party, 3rd parties focusing on single issues can become a haven for broader political views.
The Libertarian party made serious ground during the 2025 off-year elections. While not a national wave, Libertarian candidates scored key local victories in Pennsylvania and Michigan, often by championing distinctive policies. In Pennsylvania, Mayor-elect Justin Lynn pledged fiscal restraint for his impoverished town, while School Board member Reece Smith promised budget audits and transparency. In Michigan, Chris Clark won a city council seat advocating a property tax freeze for seniors, and Scotty Boman was elected to Detroit's police oversight board. These wins underscore a simmering discontent with the major parties and highlight a libertarian focus on localized fiscal accountability and government reform.
In conclusion, third-party success in the U.S FPTP system is not about winning the presidency but achieving strategic influence. By building an identifiable core fanbase around distinct, often neglected issues, they can force major parties to adopt their policies and shift the Overton window in their favour. The recent local victories of Libertarians, who championed hyper-specific platforms like fiscal restraint and transparency, demonstrated this path. Their success relies on persistent, localized efforts that capitalise on voter discontent, reframing electoral wins to shape the national conversation and policy agenda from the ground up, rather than top-down change.
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