American democracy is enduring a chaotic period with the president’s actions unpredictable and the two political parties contending with extremist members. The Democratic Party is energized by its progressive wing and Democratic Socialists, though numerically they are a minority. The Republicans are controlled by Trump and his MAGA acolytes along with other right-wing adherents. Republican politicians cannot stand up to Trump or defeat is almost automatic in GOP primaries. In recent Democratic primaries, progressives and Democratic Socialists were most successful.
However, in a Gallup poll released in January, 45 percent of respondents identified as independents with 27% Democrats or and 27% Republicans. I, and a large plurality of Americans who consider ourselves independents or centrists have no party as our political home. In elections, we either vote for the lesser of evil in the two parties or do not vote. It is time for this to change and provide us with a viable option.
It is true that in the past, third parties have been unsuccessful with presidential candidates in national elections, from Theodore Roosevelt, Senator Robert La Follette, Strom Thurmond and the Dixiecrats, George Wallace, another staunch segregationist, and Ross Perot, a Texas industrialist in 1992 and 1996. He was a fiscal conservative, populist and economic nationalist who promised to balance the budget. Clinton won the race, Perot obtaining almost 19 percent of the vote.
There have also been others like Ralph Nader and various independent candidates, none of them gaining traction with voters. Thus, with no past successes in challenges to the two dominant parties, why do I think this is an opportune time to establish a centrist third party.
In 2010, a group of disillusioned Republicans, Democrats and independents came together to form No Labels with the idea of creating a berth for voters who were dissatisfied with both legacy parties. This organization has been promoting a centrist vision with bipartisanship and common-sense ideas. They are also concerned about the looming debt crisis.
Though No Labels has been in existence for 16 years, they haven’t yet been able to get much backing for a third party. Both Republicans and Democrats have been strongly opposed. There is no question that a centrist third party is necessary, and if No Labels cannot bring it to fruition, perhaps it could combine with other groups or grow its membership to generate more interest and financing. Or another organization could be formed to accomplish the job.
In 2025, a chapter of No Labels in Arizona changed its name to the Independent Party and tried to get on the ballot They were sued by the Democrats and Republicans to be kept off the ballot because the use of Independent in their name would confuse unaffiliated voters. A Phoenix judge in March 2026 agreed, saying that the renaming could be considered a “political bait and switch.” 41,000 voters had been registered under the No Labels Party name in Arizona.
There are a number of reasons a centrist party is needed now. The first is that at no time in American history has there been such a predominance of independent and centrist voters who have no political party. The second is that both legacy parties are bleeding voters because of their high degree of partisanship. Many of their members are not as extreme as the parties’ ideologues. Third, it is difficult to get legislation passed because of the existing partisanship and the man currently in the White House. If a centrist party could form shifting coalitions with the other parties, government could function more effectively, and more legislation would be enacted. Virtually every other democracy has more than two parties and forms coalitions to govern. Because of the Internet and social media, it would also be easier to start a political party now than at any time in the past.
A new centrist party could be organized on state levels and doesn’t have to run a presidential candidate at the outset, unless there is a charismatic figure who is a true centrist. To initiate a centrist party would require political professionals who recognize the need and want to be involved to reinvigorate our democracy. Funding could come from the grass roots and wealthy individuals who realize the importance of a centrist party and are not looking for a quid pro quo or special favors for their contributions.
Republicans and Democrats have been captured by extreme elements within their parties making America difficult to govern, with partisanship, inefficiency and corruption rampant in government and politics. A new, centrist third party could put the nation back on the right track and make democracy function properly again. There will be pushback and obstruction from the current parties and the man in the White House, but it can be done. In fact, it must be done if American democracy is going to thrive in the future.
Political junkie, Vietnam vet, neurologist- three books on aging and dementia. Book on health care reform in 2009- Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System. Book on the need for a centrist third party- Resurrecting Democracy- A Citizen’s Call for a Centrist Third Party published in 2011. Aging Wisely, published in August 2014 by Rowman and Littlefield. Latest book- The Uninformed Voter published May 2020