# New 3rd party kicks off - Forward Party
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [July 28, 2022, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684 "2022-07-28T03:10:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/41 "2022-07-28T21:08:17Z")
> [@RitterSport](#):
>
> Maybe they should be called the Strawman Party.
Really. Anyone who claims that “the far left” wants to “confiscate all guns and repeal the Second Amendment.” will be taken with all of the seriousness and gravitas I feel they deserve. In fact. just writing this post used up all I have to say about them.
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### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/42 "2022-07-28T21:40:19Z")
Here’s its website, with its program.
> **[Why Forward?](https://www.forwardparty.com/whyforward)**
>
> Read the guiding core principles of the new Forward Party. Those principles include ranked choice voting, non-partisan primaries, fact-based governance, human-centered capitalism, effective and modern government, grace and tolerance, and universal...
IOW, it’s got nothing deeper than platitudes.
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### Author:  [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/43 "2022-07-28T21:49:30Z")
> [@snowthx](#):
>
> I also think there are a fair number of conservatives that are all for the fiscal responsibility/small government/strong defense thing and are generally liberal on social issues, but are disgusted with the hate-filled/fear-mongering current iteration of the GOP.
That’s supposedly what half the Libertarian party believes (the other half is the pro-marijuana contingent that also happens to vote.) So they get a few Northeastern Republicans like Lincoln Chaffee and William Weld, and [then they boast on their website that they got a state senator elected in Wyoming while mumbling about their candidate getting fewer than two million votes for President.](https://www.lp.org/2020-election/)
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### Author:  [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/44 "2022-07-28T21:49:44Z")
From that page:
> We won’t cancel people…
Bingo! That was the last square I needed! What do I win?
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### Author:  [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/45 "2022-07-28T21:56:07Z")
They also say they won’t silence debate. I can see why that’s heretical.
In a nation of over 300 million people, two main parties, while a stable outcome, can’t claim to represent the spectrum of thought present without bundling some weird groups together. That said, I don’t see this new association having much impact. The two main parties do adapt.
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### Author:  [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/46 "2022-07-28T22:00:17Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#):
>
> IOW, it’s got nothing deeper than platitudes.
Seems to me their pages on ranked choice voting, non-partisan primaries and Independent Redistricting Commissions are pretty substantive. These are concrete changes that could enable all the other fixes that the US needs.
They also seem to recognize that these things need to be implemented largely at the State level, and so hopefully they’ll be working towards winning State offices.
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### Author:  [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/47 "2022-07-28T22:00:30Z")
> [@octopus](#):
>
> They also say they won’t silence debate. I can see why that’s heretical.
Totally. The conservatives are using the power of the state to disallow discussion of race or gay people in school, and have been banning books from libraries, and sending librarians death threats. Also, liberals can be mean on twitter sometimes.
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### Author:  [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/48 "2022-07-28T22:12:51Z")
I haven’t clicked their link. Is anyone familiar with how the Forward Party would like the honest history of slavery, the reconstruction, Jim Crow, redlining and white flight to be taught in our public schools?
Do they favor an open, Democratic delve into the issues, or more of a Republican “sweep it under the rug” approach?
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### Author:  [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/49 "2022-07-28T22:16:20Z")
Yep. And a lot of people seem to want the freedom from _the consequences_ of their speech. They want to say whatever bigoted shitty thing enters their mind, and not be “canceled” (ie not face any consequences)
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### Author:  [@Temporary\_Name](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Temporary_Name)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/50 "2022-07-28T23:11:52Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#):
>
> David Jolly, one of the chief drivers of this movement, was just speaking on MSNBC. He said the group does not intend to advance any candidates for 2024 but will endorse the ones running who seem to best fit the values of the new party. Meaning Democrats.
This matches what I have read and seen about this group today. They have no intention of fielding a presidential candidate, but might run some local candidates. Mostly they seem to want to be a cheering section for some genuinely moderate voters who are disaffected by extremes in both parties and to grow very slowly. (This by-the-way is how I would describe myself despite moving considerably to the left since the GOP has become . . . well, what it is.
Being there for the voters rather than to push a candidate does seem like a sincere and well intentioned effort rather than the self aggrandizement that it would be easy to assume is the point. Personally, I would love to see it succeed.
Some time ago (a year or more?) I suggested something similar to this on this board. If I recall my views then, I was picturing two “wing” parties of about 35%-38% of voters in each leaving a good twenty percent or more in the moderate middle ground party. As I recall, my hope was that it would cause ALL parties to have to compromise and form alliances. (In other words, it would force Republicans to actually try to find reasonable positions instead of demonizing the opposition and scaring people into voting the way they want them to vote.) The reason for that being true is that a 40% maximum influence is NOT a big enough number to win with if your only tool is just an empty bag of fear- some good faith compromise would be required.The base would not be big enough to win by appealing only to them- would have to move toward the middle, there would be no place else to go.
But looking at this **Forward Party** from another direction, it very much reminds me of the Bull Moose Party. Even the name is similar (The BM Party was officially called the Progressive Party; Progressive and Forward are kind of synonyms after all.) Also, the Bull Moose Party didn’t run its own candidates for the most part (I mean after Teddy R). Eventually it folded back into one of the major parties. I even think the motives for creating the two cousin parties are similar; dissatisfaction with what the party (or parties) are doing in this time, a sense of losing something essential to the nation, brought on by a populist President who was too loud and quite unconventional (of course Roosevelt was WAY smarter than Trump- he went to Harvard and did accomplish things during his term [to the chagrin of the Trusts], plus the problem was keeping him from personally fighting (he held wrestling matches in the White House) while Trump’s most violent acts are perpetrated against food and food conveyances like plates).
Being optimistic beyond all reason, I do believe having a third party that keeps the right (which is always the entire far right these days) from imposing their will upon the entire country because they cannot win by simply appealing to the base does seem ideal to me. It may even push people like Gaetz and Greene and Bobert back into a fringe designation because there will be a place for fiscal (and even non-religious social) conservatives a different place to have a voice.
The things that I can see would make it automatically fail at this point are:
~If is became a full third of the electorate. It needs to be big enough to spoil either side- but not big enough to fully challenge either party.
~If it is built upon one strong personality or one (temporarily significant) issue.
~If it becomes significant enough to take itself too seriously or overreach.
~An important one that slipped my mind while I was typing the others.
I would not hold my breath waiting for this effort to succeed, but it could be very good to (at the worst) no worse off than we are now. I also think that with the polarization happening – now might be the most ideal time for it to have a shot at success.
> [@Horatius](#):
>
> Seems to me their pages on ranked choice voting, non-partisan primaries and Independent Redistricting Commissions are pretty substantive. These are concrete changes that could enable all the other fixes that the US needs.
>
> They also seem to recognize that these things need to be implemented largely at the State level, and so hopefully they’ll be working towards winning State offices.
Hear, Hear!!
They do seem to have some moral high ground and some reasonable, common sense solutions.
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### Author:  [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/51 "2022-07-28T23:28:55Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#):
>
> Congrats conservatives, you found a new way to dilute the non-conservative vote and win more elections.
Though my reading of that is it’ll attract more Republicans (whose party has been taken over by the most lunatic of radical fringe) than Democrats (who’s party is absolutely in the sway of the most milquetoast centrists)
Not that logic has much place in any sentence invovling “republicans” but I would 100% understand a Republican saying “I’m voting for Forward as the Republican party has become too extreme” but seriously could any Democrat say the same thing about the Biden administration?!
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### Author:  [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/52 "2022-07-28T23:31:42Z")
If they can sign on with the Libertarians, they could maybe do something. Likewise, if they can get sufficient financing from big business who want a low-tax party, minus the culture war.
Overall, though, probably the best that they can do is offer moderate, non-opposite-party candidates in extreme regions, to try and prevent crazies from getting elected. Imagine if someone like Larry Hogan was given backing in Devin Nunes’ old district. There’s a reasonable chance that Nunes would lose.
And, to some extent, I don’t know that we really need more than axing the crazies. Ultimately, you don’t need to hold 50% of Congress to decide policy. It’s the 10% of politicians in the middle, who can go either way on a bill, on accepting an appointment, etc., who end up deciding everything. The 10% is the true power.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/53 "2022-07-28T23:38:59Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#):
>
> “The party, which is centrist, has no specific policies yet.”
That’s the part which makes no sense. We have a centrist party here in America (and a right wing party). So if there’s a void that needed to be filled by a third party, it’s for a left wing party.
Of course, splitting the centrist vote benefits the right wing party and that may be the point. The Forward Party may not get a lot of votes but I doubt it will lack for donations.
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### Author:  [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/54 "2022-07-28T23:40:35Z")
> [@Velocity](#):
>
> I desperately hope they make a big impact.
God no. This party will only help Republicans win. Fuck Yang. The only third party I want to see is one started by Trump.
> [@bump](#):
>
> If the Forward Party can siphon off say… 10% of GOP voters who don’t like the way the party is headed, but are too indoctrinated to vote Democrat, then the party has done some good.
More likely they siphon off 10% of the Democratic voters.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/55 "2022-07-28T23:41:54Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#):
>
> Overall, though, probably the best that they can do is offer moderate, non-opposite-party candidates in extreme regions, to try and prevent crazies from getting elected.
The Forward Party won’t face any serious opposition as long as it doesn’t win any elections. If it actually looks like if might succeed in replacing the Democratic Party (which I doubt) then the Republicans will offer if the same mindless opposition they give the Democrats.
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### Author:  [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/56 "2022-07-28T23:46:21Z")
As said, displacing a party isn’t necessary. Having one party available as a “not the other party” might be the solution to what ails us.
Every cycle, look for the crazies who are running and who are effectively unopposed because the locals refuse to cross sides, run to those regions, find someone normal, encourage them to run, and hey Bob’s your uncle.
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### Author:  [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/57 "2022-07-28T23:49:05Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#):
>
> If they can sign on with the Libertarians, they could maybe do something.
The Libertarian Party has been [taken over by the far right](https://reason.com/2022/05/29/mises-caucus-takes-control-of-libertarian-party/).
For a new party to triumph in American politics, an old one has to melt away. Neither of the two incumbent parties is anywhere close to disappearing.
I hope they focus on state and local.
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### Author:  [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/58 "2022-07-28T23:50:07Z")
It’s all ego for Yang. I can’t bring myself to care.
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### Author:  [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2022, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/59 "2022-07-28T23:52:12Z")
> [@PhillyGuy](#):
>
> The Libertarian Party has been taken over by the far right.
If so, then I would expect that to have left quite a few available to be vacuumed up.
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### Author:  [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2022, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-3rd-party-kicks-off-forward-party/968684/60 "2022-07-29T00:02:01Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#):
>
> More likely they siphon off 10% of the Democratic voters.
The [Wikipedia article](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forward_Party) says they will endorse moderate Republicans and Democrats, rather than siphoning:
> [@](#):
>
> . . . the Forward Party plans to endorse candidates from both major parties, third parties, as well as independents who advocate for the core values rather than field their own.
Or did that change today?
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