Reform Party of Florida

Last updated
Reform Party of Florida
Chairperson Mark Cardenas
Senate leadernone
Assembly leadernone
Founded1997
Headquarters Tampa, FL
Ideology Populism
Civic nationalism
Fiscal conservatism
Centrism
National affiliation Alliance Party
Colors Red, White, Blue (unofficial)
Website
Alliance Party

The Reform Party of Florida is the Florida state affiliate of the Alliance Party.

Contents

Registration

Reform Party membership in Florida has decreased since the year 2000. [1]

YearRegistered Members
19961,557
19982,695
20004,672
20024,616
20043,872
20063,790
20083,093
20102,473
20121,961 [2]
20141,717 [3]
20161,400 [4]

2000 campaign controversy

After a great deal of infighting conservative presidential candidate Pat Buchanan was granted the party's ballot line. [5] Due to confusion over the design of some ballots, it is thought that many residents miscast their vote for Buchanan, believing they were casting their vote for Al Gore. Buchanan received an unexpectedly strong 3,407 votes in Palm Beach County. [6] Many accused Buchanan of being a "spoiler."

2004 election controversy

In 2004, the party gained national attention when efforts were made by local Democrats to keep Ralph Nader, the Reform Party presidential candidate, off Florida's ballot. [7] The affair garnered a great deal of media attention, with moderate Senator John McCain publicly condemning the attempts to keep Nader off the ballot. [8]

The courts eventually sided with Nader, and his name appeared on the ballot. Nader's spokesperson, Kevin Zeese, criticized the ordeal, saying: "We hope Democrats engage on issues and stop anti-democratic efforts to prevent voters from having a choice." [9]

Nader received 32,971 votes in Florida. [10]

2006 gubernatorial campaign

Max Linn, a financial planner and President of the "Eight is Enough" term limit campaign [11] ran as the Reform Party nominee in the 2006 Florida Gubernatorial election. His running mate was Tom Macklin [12] former mayor of Avon Park and founder of the American Party. [13] Despite his unorthodox media blitz, Linn gained most of his notoriety among the Florida electorate for an emergency landing he made on an Orlando, Florida highway in October 2006 when a plane he rented had engine difficulties. Linn was not hurt, although he spent a day in the hospital under observation. Linn got 92,595 votes and in total 1.92% of the popular vote. [14]

Florida gubernatorial election, 2006 [15]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Republican Charlie Crist 2,519,845 52.18% -3.81%
Democratic Jim Davis 2,178,28945.11%+1.94%
Reform Max Linn92,5951.92%+1.92%
Independent John Wayne Smith15,9870.33%
Independent Richard Paul Dembinsky11,9210.25%
Independent Karl C.C. Behm10,4870.22%
Write-ins1470.00%0
Majority341,5567.10%-5.75%
Turnout 4,829,271
Republican hold Swing

Recent events (2007-present)

In 2008, Jim Brown ran for Polk County, Florida commissioner; his campaign received some press as he was the first Reform candidate ever to run for local office in the state. [16] Brown lost to incumbent Sam Johnson in the general election, garnering 13,453 votes, 6 percent of the total. [17]

Former Democratic presidential candidate Darcy G. Richardson and former state legislator Nancy Argenziano ran as the nominees of the Reform Party for Governor and Lt. Governor of Florida in 2018. It was the first time in more than a decade the Reform Party had fielded a statewide candidate in any state. The ticket finished in third place, capturing 47,140 votes.

Notable statewide and congressional election results

YearOfficeCandidatePopular votesPercentage
1998 5th Congressional District Jack Gargan 67,14733.7% [18]
2000 United States Senate Class 1 H. Joel Deckard 17,3380.30% [19]
2000 9th Congressional District John Duffey46,47418.1% [20]
2000 15th Congressional District John McGuire7,5562.6% [21]
2006 Governor / Lieutenant Governor Max Linn / Tom Macklin92,5951.92% [21]
2018 Governor / Lieutenant Governor Darcy G. Richardson / Nancy Argenziano 47,1400.57%

Presidential nominee results

Since 1996, the Reform Party of Florida has placed a candidate for President of the United States on the ballot in every election except 2008.

The party's best performance in a presidential race came from Ross Perot in 1996.

YearNomineeVotes
1996 Ross Perot 483,870 (9.12%)
2000 Patrick Buchanan 17,484 (0.29%)
2004 Ralph Nader 32,971 (0.43%)
2008 No Candidate-------
2012 Andre Barnett 820 (0.01%)
2016 Rocky De La Fuente 9,108 (0.10%)
2020 Rocky De La Fuente 5,966 (0.05%)

Related Research Articles

2000 United States presidential election 54th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 2000 United States presidential election was the 54th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 7, 2000. Republican candidate George W. Bush, the governor of Texas and eldest son of the 41st president, George H. W. Bush, won the election, defeating incumbent Vice President Al Gore. It was the fourth of five American presidential elections, and the first since 1888, in which the winning candidate lost the popular vote, and is considered one of the closest elections in US history, with longstanding controversy surrounding the ultimate results.

Natural Law Party (United States) Political party associated with Transcendental Meditation

The Natural Law Party (NLP) was a national political party in the United States affiliated with the international Natural Law Party. It was founded in 1992, but beginning in 2004 many of its state chapters dissolved. The party's Michigan chapter is still active as of 2021.

1996 United States presidential election 53rd quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1996 United States presidential election was the 53rd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1996. Incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton defeated former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, the Republican nominee, and Ross Perot, the Reform Party nominee.

Vote pairing, in the UK and Australia, or pairing, is the mechanism by which two members of parliament of opposing parties agree, with the consent of their party whips, to abstain from voting if the other one is unable to vote. Thus they maintain the balance of votes if one or the other is unable to attend. A three-line whip would usually be excepted from this agreement. For MPs who are not paired a bisque, a rota system allowing absence is used. This article is not about this process, but about peer to peer voting in elections among constituents.

Reform Party of the United States of America American political party

The Reform Party of the United States of America (RPUSA), generally known as the Reform Party USA or the Reform Party, is a political party in the United States, founded in 1995 by Ross Perot.

Peter Camejo Venezuelan American politician

Peter Miguel Camejo Guanche was a Venezuelan American author, activist, politician and Sailing Olympian. In the 2004 United States presidential election, he was selected by independent candidate Ralph Nader as his vice-presidential running mate on a ticket which had the endorsement of the Reform Party.

Ralph Nader 2004 presidential campaign Independent political campaign for president of the United States

The 2004 presidential campaign of Ralph Nader, political activist, author, lecturer and attorney began on February 23, 2004. This was Nader's third presidential campaign, having run in 1996 and 2000 campaign as the candidate for the Green Party; in 2004 he ran as an independent candidate. Nader won the 2002 endorsement of the Reform Party USA, and thus appeared on the ballot as the Reform Party candidate in several states. In some states, Nader was on the ballot as an independent candidate, while in other states, Nader was deemed not to have met the requirements for ballot access.

Independence Party of New York Third party in New York, United States

The Independence Party is a political party in U.S. state of New York. The party was founded in 1991 by Dr. Gordon Black, Tom Golisano, and Laureen Oliver from Rochester, New York, and acquired ballot status in 1994. They lost their ballot status in 2020 under a change in the New York state election law that required at least 130,000 votes on the party line every two years. Although often associated with Ross Perot, as the party came to prominence in the wake of Perot's 1992 presidential campaign, it was created prior to Perot's run. In 2020, it affiliated with the Alliance Party, but disaffiliated in 2021. It currently has one registered member of the New York State Assembly, Fred Thiele.

The Socialist Party of Florida (SPFL) is the Florida state chapter of the Socialist Party USA, a democratic socialist party. The SPFL appeared on ballots during the 2012 US presidential election in Florida and 2014 Florida gubernatorial election. It is no longer a registered political party in the state.

Independent Party of Delaware Political party in United States

The Independent Party of Delaware (IPoD) is a political party in the State of Delaware, United States. As of March 2021, it is the third largest political party in Delaware with 9,443 registered voters. The preamble outlines the party's goals: "The Independent Party of Delaware is dedicated to reform of government at all levels in the Greater Public Interest through election of independent alternative candidates". The party supports laissez-faire capitalism, limited government, and environmentalism. It was officially formed on August 29, 2000, for the stated purpose of providing Delaware voters with an alternative to the Republican and Democratic parties. The party works to support independent candidates for public office by providing them with ballot access, distributing information to voters, and encouraging participation in candidate debates.

Brian Moore (political activist) American politician

Brian Patrick Moore is an American politician and founder of antiwar organization Nature Coast Coalition for Peace & Justice. He was the presidential nominee of the Socialist Party USA for the 2008 United States presidential election. He waged several campaigns for mayor and city council in Washington, D.C. and twice ran for the United States House of Representatives from Florida's 5th congressional district, winning none. He ran for the Democratic Party nomination for Governor of Florida in 2010, but lost in the primary election.

Ralph Nader 2000 presidential campaign 2000 U.S. presidential election Green Party Nader/LaDuke ticket

The 2000 presidential campaign of Ralph Nader, political activist, author, lecturer and attorney, began on February 21, 2000. He cited "a crisis of democracy" as motivation to run. He ran in the 2000 United States presidential election as the nominee of the Green Party. He was also nominated by the Vermont Progressive Party and the United Citizens Party of South Carolina. The campaign marked Nader's second presidential bid as the Green nominee, and his third overall, having run as a write-in campaign in 1992 and a passive campaign on the Green ballot line in 1996.

The 2008 presidential campaign of Ralph Nader, political activist, author, lecturer and attorney began on February 24, 2008. He announced his intent to run as an independent candidate, on NBC's Meet The Press. It was Nader's fifth campaign; he ran in the four election cycles prior to 2008: 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004. The 2008 election was the third in which he had officially run a national campaign. While Nader ran as an independent, in some states he had ballot access with the Independent-Ecology Party, the Natural Law Party, and the Peace and Freedom Party. Nader received 738,475 votes.

2000 Reform Party presidential primaries

Following Ross Perot's impressive showing during the 1996 presidential election, the Reform Party of the United States of America became the country's largest third party. The party's 2000 presidential candidate would be entitled to $12.5 million in matching funds. Several high-profile candidates vied for the nomination, including Donald Trump, Pat Buchanan, and physicist John Hagelin. For a brief time, Congressman John B. Anderson and Congressman Ron Paul were considered potential candidates, but both ultimately declined to seek the nomination.

Green Party of Florida Florida affiliate of the Green Party

The Green Party of Florida is the state affiliate of the Green Party of the United States in Florida.

Christina Tobin American political activist

Christina Tobin is an American activist and leader in the election reform and voters' rights movements. She is the founder and chair of The Free & Equal Elections Foundation, and president and chief executive officer of Free and Equal, Inc.

This article contains lists of official and potential third party and independent candidates associated with the 1996 United States presidential election.

The New Jersey Reform Party was the state party organization for New Jersey of the Reform Party of the United States of America.

Vermont Green Party Vermont affiliate of the Green Party

The Vermont Green Party (VGP) or Vermont Greens formed in 2002 and was a state-level political party in Vermont.

The Ecology Party of Florida is a minor environmental political party in the United States state of Florida. Founded as a front group to support Ralph Nader's 2008 presidential candidacy, it has remained minimally active in the years since that election.

References

  1. "Bookclosing Reports - Division of Elections - Florida Department of State". dos.myflorida.com.
  2. http://dos.myflorida.com/media/693854/gen2012_countyparty.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  3. http://dos.myflorida.com/media/693898/gen2014_countyparty.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  4. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-09-13. Retrieved 2016-09-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/100300/met_4240237.html
  6. http://projecteuclid.org/DPubS?service=UI&version=1.0&verb=Display&handle=euclid.ss/1049993203
  7. "THE 2004 CAMPAIGN; Judge Rules Against Nader". The New York Times. 10 September 2004.
  8. Seelye, Katharine Q. (17 September 2004). "McCain Urges Florida Court to Allow Nader on State Ballot". The New York Times.
  9. http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/09/18/presidential.polls.nader/index.html
  10. http://www.uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?f=0&year=2004&fips=12
  11. "Our Campaigns - Candidate - Max Linn". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  12. "Our Campaigns - Candidate - Tom Macklin". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  13. "Welcome to the American Party of Florida!". americanpartyofflorida.com.
  14. "November 7, 2006 General Election". Florida Department of State.
  15. "November 7, 2006 General Election, Governor and Lieutenant Governor". Florida Department of State Division of Elections. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
  16. "Reform Party goes local |".
  17. "Johnson Wins Re-Election to County Commission". The Ledger. November 4, 2008.
  18. "1998election.pdg" (PDF).
  19. "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 7, 2000" (PDF).
  20. "MICOCOMP output file" (PDF).
  21. 1 2 "MICROCOMP output file" (PDF).