By Illinois Radio Network
SPRINGFIELD – There’s always the next election.
That will have to be the mantra for Illinois’ so-called third parties after their statewide candidates were unable to break the 5 percent threshold state law requires parties to be considered established.
The issue is about ballot access. Established parties, like the Democrats and Republicans, have a lower signature requirement than non-established candidates. Third parties are also excluded from the months-long primary process, which helps elevate Republican and Democratic candidates.
Illinois Green Party Chairman Vito Mastrangelo said one problem is a lack of media coverage.
“If (Green Party Presidential Candidate) Dr. (Jill) Stein had received 1 percent of the attention that Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton received, I’m pretty sure she’d be getting double-digit percentages.”
The Green Party received nearly 10 percent for their gubernatorial candidate in 2006, but received less than 5 percent in 2010. That moved the party back to being non-established in Illinois, which means they again have to get several times more signatures to get on a ballot than Republicans or Democrats.
Illinois Libertarian Party Chairman Lex Green said that even though preliminary numbers show their statewide candidates getting more votes in recent years, it still wasn’t enough.
“We’re still going to be considered under Illinois law to be a new party for at least another two years.”
Green said that despite not reaching the required threshold, Libertarians will continue to grow and are expecting to “take all of the flood of new volunteers that (Libertarian presidential candidate) Gary Johnson inspired and get them refocused on growing the party at a grassroots level.”
Mastrangelo said nobody ever said it would be easy.
“We realize this is a lifelong project, if not longer, but we firmly believe that a third party is necessary.”
Both rejected the notion that a vote for a third party is a wasted vote.
