List of political parties in the United States
Political parties of the United States traditionally divide the available spectrum of choices into two camps. The first is known as the "major parties" and the second as the "third parties" camp. This is due to the fact that the United States has a two-party system, with the two largest centrist parties dividing the vote between themselves in the national elections. This is partly a consequence of the first-past-the-post election system but also due to restrictive ballot access laws imposed on third parties.
Many third parties throughout U.S. history have achieved regional success and some (notably the Prohibition Party and the Socialist Party) have had major portions of their platforms incorporated into the "major parties" platforms. While only the Republican Party has gone on to become a dominant player in American political life, the overall political platforms of several third parties have taken root in the American political landscape.
Current major parties
Current "third" parties
Each of these five parties had ballot status for its presidential candidate in states with enough electoral votes to have a theoretical chance of winning in the last presidential election.
- Constitution Party (formerly the U.S. Taxpayers' Party)
- Green Party
- Libertarian Party
- Natural Law Party
- Reform Party
Current minor and regional parties that have endorsed candidates
- Alaskan Independence Party
- America First Party, established by former Reform Party members in 2002
- American Heritage Party
- American Independent Party
- American Nazi Party
- American Party
- American Reform Party, established by former Reform Party members in 1997
- Christian Falangist Party of America
- Communist Party USA
- Conservative Party (New York State)
- Constitutional Action Party
- Family Values Party
- Freedom Socialist Party
- Grassroots Party
- Independence Party of Minnesota
- Independent American Party
- Labor Party
- Liberal Party (New York State)
- Light Party
- New Party
- New Union Party
- Peace and Freedom Party
- Progressive Party (Vermont)
- Prohibition Party
- Republican Moderate Party (Alaska)
- The Revolution
- Revolutionary Communist Party
- Revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg Club
- Socialist Action
- Socialist Alternative
- Socialist Equality Party
- Socialist Labor Party
- Socialist Party USA
- Socialist Workers Party
- Southern Party
- Southern Independence Party
- Spartacist League
- U.S. Pacifist Party
- We the People Party
- Workers World Party
- Working Families Party
Historical political parties
Pre-Constitution
Pre-Jackson
- Democratic-Republican Party (also known as "Anti-Federalist", "Jeffersonian", "Jacksonian" or simply "Republican")
- Federalist Party (although this party effectively dissolved after the Hartford convention)
Jacksonian Era
Civil War
- Democratic Party
- Republican Party
- Free Soil
- Know-Nothing Party (officially called the American Party)
- Liberty Party
Gilded Age
Progressive Era
- Democratic Party
- Republican Party
- Farmer-Labor Party
- Fusion Party (primarily in the northern states)
- Non-Partisan League (Not a party in the technical sense)
- Progressive (including the "Bull Moose" party)
- Social Democratic Party
- Socialist Party of America
Later 20th century
- Democratic Party
- Republican Party
- America First Party, whose peak came in 1944 and is not affiliated with the current America First Party
- Union Party
- Dixiecrat (also known as States' Rights Democratic)
- American Independent Party: the party under Alabama Governor George Wallace in the 1968 and 1972 elections
- Citizens Party (1980-1984)
- Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
- New Alliance Party/National Alliance Party
- Green Party
- Libertarian Party
See: Party designation in early United States Congresses