“A third party has zero chance at success. All it will do is throw the election to Hillary.”
And the significant difference between Sen. McCain and Sen. Clinton would be....?
“If conservatives arent even a majority in the Republican Party, how do you expect them to get anywhere with a third party?”
Politics are local. Much as we like to “Federalize” everything in politics, a great deal of what gets done is on a local or state level. From a Federal government perspective, a viable third party would eventually end up with some members of Congress and the Senate as well as providing an alternative choice for President. Eventually, a conservative political party might end up replacing the GOP in much the same way the GOP replaced the Whigs in the 1860’s.
Fewer and fewer people identify with either major party at this point; “independents” outnumber registrations for either major party in many areas. So the internal composition of the GOP is less important in determining what happens in the general elections anyway.
What a conservative political party would ultimately do is allow conservatives a voice and a place at the table. That’s something conservatives no longer have within the GOP.
The Conservative Party was formed in 1962 to restore a meaningful choice to the voters of New York State. At that time, the three existing political parties espoused the doctrinaire liberal philosophy of the welfare state at home and the collectivist ideology abroad. In just four short decades, the party has grown from a small band of conservative-minded men and women to a statewide organization of almost 170,000 individuals dedicated to the traditional American values of individual freedom, individual responsibility and individual effort.
From a humble beginning garnering 141,000 votes on ballot Row F, our principles have attracted Empire State voters in sufficient numbers to raise the Party to Row C and twice received over a million votes for our candidate in a statewide election. From the founding of the party, it has been successively chaired by Kieran ODoherty, J. Daniel Mahoney, Serphin R. Maltese and Michael R. Long. Through the leadership of these men and the hard work of committee members, the Conservative Party elected James L. Buckley to the U. S. Senate, William Carney to the House of Representatives, Serphin R. Maltese to the State Senate, Rosemary R. Gunning and Charles Jerabec to the State Assembly, and numerous county, city, town and village offices.
The 1994 elections were a breakthrough for the Conservative Party as we provided the margin of victor for Governor George E. Pataki with the 326,605 votes cast on our line. Attorney General Vacco nosed out radical Karen Burstein by 88,340 votes. He received 305,961 votes on the Conservative Line. In 1998, 348,272 votes for Governor George E. Pataki were cast on the Conservative line, almost 20,000 more than in 1994, an anomaly in political history.
In the past 43 years, the Conservative Party has played many pivotal rolls in electing officials from Supreme Court Justices to Town Justices, County Executives to Village Board Members, City Council Members to Ward Leaders, and will continue to play a pivotal role in the process of electing those who are committed to conservative values.
Our strong support of term limits was instrumental when New York City voters went to the polls in November and defeated proposed changes to the term limits for the offices of Mayor and the City Council previously enacted.
In 1997, the Conservative Party led the citizens of New York in defeating the $2.4 billion School Bond Act. Liberals outspent us 6 to 1 in trying to pass what would have been nothing more that a colossal waste of taxpayer money. And, we defeated the proposal for a Constitutional Convention. In the year 2000, we were instrumental in defeating the most expensive transportation bond issues ever placed on the ballot. In November 2003, we were instrumental in defeating the "non-partisan election" ballot question in New York City and the raising of the debt limit for small city school districts.
In 2005, we led the way to defeat the ill-conceived Power Grab by Albanys legislators.
History was made in New York City with the 2001 election of Conservative Party Executive Vice Chairman James P. Molinaro as the Borough President of Staten Island and his reelection in 2005.
The 2005-2006 Legislature includes 35 State Senators and 48 Assembly Members with Conservative Party designation. The 109th Congress includes eight representatives from New York State who hold Conservative designation.
The Conservative Party has proudly endorsed President George W. Bush in both his 2000 and 2004 election efforts.
Statewide the Party has forged strong links to the Republicans and Democrats of compatible views and has played a key role in halting the leftward drift of Empire State Government. On the national level, we are affiliated with the American Conservative Union. Although we are not formally affiliated with any other national conservative organization, we are recognized as the influential New York branch of the American conservative movement and maintain a close and cordial relationship with conservative organizations and public officials both in other states and Washington, D.C.
President Ronald Reagan stated: The Conservative Party has established itself as a preeminent force in New York Politics and an important part of our political history.
With your help, the Conservative Party will continue its vital role in reshaping the political agenda of the State and Nation.
Where do I find the National Conservative Party?