American Independent Party
The American Independent Party is a California political party. The party was established in 1967 by Bill Shearer and his wife Eileen.
In 1968, the American Independent Party nominated former Alabama Governor George C. Wallace, As its presidential candidate and retired Air Force General Curtis E. LeMay (as the vice presidential candidate. Wallace ran on every state ballot in the 1968 U.S. Presidential Election. Wallace did not represent the American Independent Party in all fifty states. In Connecticut, for instance, he was listed on the ballot as representing the "George Wallace Party." The 1968 presidential ticket received 13.5 percent of the popular vote and 46 electoral votes.
In 1969, representatives from 40 states established the American Party as the successor to the American Independent Party. (In some places, such as Connecticut, the American Party was officially constituted as the American Conservative Party.) The official party flag adoption took place on August 30, 1970. The flag depicts an eagle holding a group of arrows in its left talons, over a compass rose, with a banner which reads "The American Independent Party" at the eagle's base. In 1972, the party nominated former Congressman John G. Schmitz of California for president and Tennessee author Thomas Jefferson Anderson for vice president. In 1976, the American Party split into the more moderate American Party, which included more northern conservatives and Schmitz supporters, and the more extreme American Independent Party, which focused on the deep South. Both of the parties have nominated candidates for the presidency and other offices. Neither the American Party nor the American Independent Party has had much national success.
The American Independent Party has had ballot status in the state of California since 1968 and is still active there. As of May 2008, AIP's registration total was 331,619.[1]
In the early 1980’s, Bill Shearer led the American Independent Party into the Populist Party. From 1992 until 2008, the American Independent party was the California affiliate of the national Constitution Party, formerly the U.S. Taxpayers Party. In June, 2008 it affiliated with America's Independent Party (AIP).
Many political analysts have theorized that the Party, which has received very few votes in recent California elections, maintains its state ballot status because people join the Party mistakenly believing that they are registering as an "independent," also known as a "non-partisan" or "decline-to-state" voter.[2]
One such voter was Jennifer Siebel, fianceé of San Francisco's liberal Democratic mayor Gavin Newsom; in 2008, Siebel attempted to change her party affiliation from Republican to Non-Partisan, but "checked the American Independent box thinking that was what independent voters were supposed to do," according to the San Francisco Chronicle.[3]
According to Third Party Watch,[4] the AIP split into two factions in June 2008: one recognized Jim King as chairman of the AIP while the other continued to recognize Ed Noonan as chairman. The former held its convention in Los Angeles, June 26-28, 2008. The latter held its convention in Sacramento on July 5, 2008.
The Noonan faction was listed as the Qualified Political Party by the California Secretary of State as of July 16, 2008. [1]
Then on July 21, 2008, the California Secretary of State recognized the Noonan faction's convention and stated that Alan Keyes will be on the ballot as the AIP nominee, unless overturned by a lawsuit. [5]
Presidential candidates
- 1968 George C. Wallace
- 1972 John G. Schmitz
- 1980 John Rarick/Eileen Shearer - American Independent Party
- 1992 Howard Phillips -- U.S. Taxpayers Party
- 1996 Howard Phillips -- U.S. Taxpayers Party
- 2000 Howard Phillips -- Constitution Party
- 2004 Michael A. Peroutka -- Constitution Party
- 2008 Alan Keyes -- America's Independent Party
California gubernatorial candidates
The American Independent Party nominated the following candidates for governor of California as the California affiliate of the Constitution Party:
- 1994 Jerome McCready
- 1998 Nathan E. Johnson
- 2002 Reinhold Gulke
- 2003 Diane Beall Templin
- 2006 Edward C. Noonan
Chairmen/Vice-Chairmen
- Bill Shearer: 1967-1999
- Nathan Johnson: 1999-2002
- Jim King/Reed R. Heustis: 2002-2004
- Nancy Spirkoff: 2004-2006
- Edward C. Noonan/Mark Seidenberg: 2006-2008
American Independent Party | |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Edward C. Noonan |
| Founded | July 8, 1967 |
| Headquarters | 1561 N. Beale Road Marysville, CA 95901 |
| Ideology | Paleoconservatism |
| National affiliation | America's Independent Party |
| Website | |
| http://aipca.org | |
Notes
- ^ http://ballot-access.org/2007/010107.html#11
- ^ Voting at the Political Fault Line: California's Experiment With the Blanket Primary (2002), page 219. ISBN 0-520-22834-0.
- ^ Newsom's girlfriend stumbles into wrong party
- ^ http://thirdpartywatch.com/
- ^ Ballot Access News Blog
External links
- American Independent Party of California AIP website.
- American Independent Party King faction's blogsite.
- American Independent Party at JoinCalifornia
- In Between Politics
California political parties | ||
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| Major parties (ballot-qualified) |  | |
| Minor parties (ballot-qualified) | ||
| Minor parties (not ballot-qualified) | ||
