Sagar Dhakal

Most third parties have failed. Here’s why ours won’t. Political extremism is ripping our nation apart, and the two major parties have failed to remedy the crisis. Last week, the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol led us to relive one of the darkest days in U.S. history. The chilling culmination of an attempted electoral coup in the United States was the strongest evidence yet that we are facing the potential demise of our democracy. ........ we are coming together — Democrats, Republicans and independents — to build a new, unifying political party for the majority of Americans who want to move past divisiveness and reject extremism. ....... Americans have lost faith in government. Nearly 8 in 10 say the country is headed in the wrong direction, according to a recent survey, and two-thirds of voters think neither the Democrats nor the Republicans have the right priorities. ......... In a system torn apart by two increasingly divided extremes, you must reintroduce choice and competition. ........ For the first time in modern history, roughly half of Americans consider themselves “independents,” and two-thirds say a new party is needed (and would vote for it). Surprisingly, a majority of Democrats and Republicans say they want another option, too. ....... we’re merging our three national organizations — which represent the left, right, and center of the political spectrum — to build the launchpad for a new political party called Forward. .........

The two major parties have hollowed out the sensible center of our political system — even though that’s where most voters want to see them move.

A new party must stake out the space in between. On every issue facing this nation — from the controversial to the mundane — we can find a reasonable approach most Americans agree on. ........... On guns, for instance, most Americans don’t agree with calls from the far left to confiscate all guns and repeal the Second Amendment, but they’re also rightfully worried by the far right’s insistence on eliminating gun laws. On climate change, most Americans don’t agree with calls from the far left to completely upend our economy and way of life, but they also reject the far right’s denial that there is even a problem. On abortion, most Americans don’t agree with the far left’s extreme views on late-term abortions, but they also are alarmed by the far right’s quest to make a woman’s choice a criminal offense. ........... we will passionately advocate electoral changes such as ranked-choice voting and open primaries; for the end of gerrymandering; and for the nationwide protection of voting rights and a push to make voting remarkably easy for anyone and incredibly secure for everyone. ......... There are more than 500,000 elected positions in the United States, but a recent study found more than 70 percent of races on ballots in 2020 were unopposed or uncontested. A tiny sliver of U.S. congressional seats will have close races this November. The two major parties have shut out competition, and America is suffering as a result. ............. building an optimistic and inclusive home for the politically homeless majority. ......... We are planning liftoff at a national convention next summer and will soon seek state-by-state ballot access to run candidates in 2024 and beyond. We are actively recruiting former U.S. representatives, governors, entrepreneurs, top political operatives and community leaders to make it happen. .......... America’s founders warned about the dangers of a two-party system. Today, we’re living with the dire consequences. Giving Americans more choices is important not just for restoring civility. Our lives, our livelihoods and our way of life depend on it.

Why the third-party talk from Forward goes nowhere what they’re offering is political vaporware ....... Forward is less a party than a shapeless outline of what a party might be if it actually existed. ....... It’s being presented with the same vapid sloganeering we’ve gotten from every top-down attempt like this to form a third party ......... while politics can sometimes be flags and sunsets and stirring encomia to “common sense,” if you actually wind up with power — which, after all, is the whole point — you have to make choices. .......... You will search the Forward website in vain for actual policy positions. One page labeled “Our Platform" consists of vague goals (“Reinvigorate a fair, flourishing economy”) along with a trio of political reforms: ranked-choice voting, nonpartisan primaries and independent redistricting commissions. ......... if your goal is to run candidates and win offices (as Forward says it plans to do), you have to tell people what they’re voting for. ........ to claim the two parties are equally “extreme,” they have to exaggerate the extremism of Democrats and downplay the extremism of Republicans. ........ more important is what’s missing: the actual position of the Forward Party on these issues. They’ve told us Americans want a compromise between Democrats and Republicans, but they hint at their own stance without ever actually revealing it. .......... The winner-take-all rules of most U.S. elections are designed to make it nearly impossible for third parties to build support, since they never have the chance to make policy except in some local offices. ............. If we had multi-member districts, the Conservative Democrats and the Democratic Socialists could both be represented. Political scientist Lee Drutman has made a strong case that the two-party duopoly is the source of many of our problems, and structural changes we could make to promote third parties would make the system more responsive to the public. ......... whatever structural changes you prefer, sooner or later, a third party has to stand for something. This is the problem with the kind of centrism Forward represents. In true centrist fashion, it defines itself not by what it believes, but by an unease with whatever the other parties believe. One suspects that the people behind it are worried that if they take real positions, they’ll start alienating people; better to stick to vague notions about coming together to solve problems. ............... Real politics requires you to not just say “Gee, wouldn’t it be great if everything was better?” but to make hard choices, choices that will make some people mad. It means risky stands on principle and tradeoffs and imperfect solutions and fights.