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The Constitution Party is a conservative third party in the United States, founded as the U.S. Taxpayers Party in 1992. Its name was changed to the Constitution Party in 1999, but some state affiliate parties have different names. The Michigan affiliate has kept the US Taxpayers Party name in order to retain ballot status, and in Connecticut the affiliate is the Concerned Citizens Party.
The Constitution Party ranks third nationally in registered voters, most of which come from two states: California, in which the affiliate is the American Independent Party, founded in 1967, and Nevada, in which the affiliate is named the Independent American Party. According to Richard Winger, the editor of Ballot Access News, and other observers, the word "Independent" in the party name may have attracted the registrations of voters intending to declare themselves unaffiliated with any party.
In the 2004 elections, the Constitution Party was the only one of the national third parties to increase its percentage of the vote, polling more than 40% better than in 2000. One of its candidates, Rick Jore, was thought to have won election to the Montana state legislature, but lost when the state supreme court invalidated "one or more" of seven disputed ballots.
Platform The party holds that United States law is based on the moral principles of Christianity as taught by the Bible, urges the abolition of the federal income tax, and advocates a stricter adherence to what it views as the original intent of the United States Constitution and the principles of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Members support reducing the role of the United States federal government through drastic reductions in taxes, spending and regulation, as well as reducing and eventually eliminating the role the United States plays in supernational entities such as the United Nations.
The party has a generally conservative or paleoconservative view on issues of foreign policy, Second Amendment rights and economics, also supporting protectionist policies on trade and advocates a more restrictive immigration policy. It is conservative on social issues, including same-sex marriage, abortion and the place of religion and God in American life.
2004 election results Nationally, the Peroutka-Baldwin ballot received over 33% more votes than Howard Phillips did in 2000. This came during an election when the Green Party vote declined by 83% and the Libertarian vote was essentially flat compared to the 2000 election.
Rick Jore nealry won a seat in the Montana House of Representatives, but was found to have lost by one vote after some dual-marked ballots with one vote crossed out were discarded. In Pennsylvania, Jim Clymer won 214,837 votes in his race against incumbent U.S. Senator Arlen Specter. Attorney Joel Hansen, running on the Independent American Party ticket, got 197,934 votes (27%) for Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court. The number of Nevada voters registed in the Constitution Party doubled in 2004, making it the third largest party in the state. In South Carolina, Gary McCloud, running for a U.S. House seat in the Sixth Congressional District received 79,600 votes, 33 percent of the total.
Presidential and vice presidential nominees
See also
External links - Official site (http://www.constitutionparty.org/)
- Ballot Access News (http://www.ballot-access.org/)
- Voter Choice Coalition (http://www.voterchoice.org/)
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