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 of America) have had major portions of their platforms incorporated into the "major parties" platforms. While the parties in question did not go on to become one dominant players in American political life, their overall political platforms took 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
Other minor parties that have endorsed candidates
- America First Party, formed by former United States Reform Party members in 2002
- American Heritage Party
- American Independent Party
- American Nazi Party
- American Party
- American Reform Party
- Christian Falangist Party of America
- Communist Party USA
- Constitutional Action Party
- Family Values Party
- Freedom Socialist Party
- Grassroots Party
- Greens/Green Party USA
- Independent American Party
- Labor Party
- Light Party
- New Party
- New Union Party
- Peace and Freedom Party
- Prohibition Party
- The Revolution
- Revolutionary Communist Party
- Socialist Action
- Socialist Equality Party
- Socialist Labor Party
- Socialist Party USA
- Socialist Workers Party
- Southern Party
- Southern Independence Party
- U.S. Pacifist Party
- We the People Party
- Workers World Party
Historical political parties
Pre-Constitution
Pre-Jackson
- Democratic-Republican Party (also known as "Anti-Federalist", "Jeffersonian", "Jacksonian" or simply "Republican")
- Federalist Party
Jacksonian Era
Civil War
- Free Soil
- Know-Nothing Party (officially called the American Party)
- Liberty Party
Gilded Age
Progressive Era
- Fusion Party (primarily in the northern states)
- Progressive (including the "Bull Moose" party)
- Socialist
20th century
- America First Party, whose peak came in 1944 and is not affiliated with the current America First 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)
Current and historical regional political parties
- Alaskan Independence Party
- Farmer-Labor Party
- Independence Party of Minnesota
- Non-Partisan League (Not a party in the technical sense)
- Liberal Party of New York State
- Conservative Party of New York State
- Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
- Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
- Republican Moderate Party (Alaska)
- Working Families Party
