(The Center Square) – As Election Day draws nearer, Democrats and Republicans are firing up their bases.
Meanwhile, advocates of third-party candidates and open primaries – like the Forward Party – say it’s time to give independent voters a stronger voice in the electoral process, and they are gaining ground.
Forward has two statewide candidates appearing on the ballot in November, bringing them closer to their goal of securing official minor party status in Pennsylvania.
The next challenge, according to Craig Snyder, the party’s Pennsylvania political director, is getting the word out about their candidates: former Republican Eric Settle of Montgomery County who is running for attorney general, and Chris Foster of Allegheny County, a former Democrat, running for treasurer.
“We are excited to have gotten to this point,” he told The Center Square. However, Pennsylvanians are going to see a “tsunami of political advertising,” at a level Forward can’t compete with – so they plan to target registered independents and “soft Democrats and Republicans” who are disaffected with the major parties.
These two offices, especially the attorney general, should be nonpartisan, and “more like referees on a playing field, rather than somebody wearing the jersey of one of the two teams,” Snyder said.
He believes many voters want candidates who prioritize the law and the people of Pennsylvania over advancing a national party’s agenda and that their candidates would serve in a “truly independent-minded way.”
Receiving 2% of the vote in November would give Forward official minor party status in the state, enabling them to run candidates for vital local offices in the future. Snyder is confident Forward can achieve this due to the quality of their candidates and the desire among independent voters to be taken seriously, without being forced to align with either major party.
Until then, candidates affiliated with Forward have maintained their major party status while still pledging to govern by the party’s value-based platform.
Over the past year, the number of Forward affiliates has grown to include Democrats, Republicans, and independents running for state Senate and House seats and various local offices.
Snyder says the ‘Let America Vote Act’ sponsored by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa. could be a tremendous step forward for the more than one million registered independent voters in Pennsylvania – many of whom are veterans – who cannot participate in the primaries under the current system.
With open primaries, he suspects the number would be higher, and it would force candidates to appeal to a broader electorate. He acknowledges, however, that convincing members of Congress to vote against their own interests would be a challenge, as incumbents have a reelection rate of over 90% and benefit from district gerrymandering.
In a recent press release, Attorney General candidate Eric Settle said that as a veteran attorney with experience at the highest levels of government, he has seen how legacy parties are more interested in advancing their own interests over those of the people, “and I know that we can do better.”
“Voting for me along with Chris Foster for treasurer, the people of Pennsylvania will send a powerful message that these officers in state government should be neutral umpires, calling balls and strikes, not out there calling the game for partisan ends,” he said.
“Partisanship is approaching pre-Civil War levels, and our upcoming election is likely to inflame these feelings even further,” said National Forward Party Co-Chair Andrew Yang. “While Forward isn’t getting involved in the presidential race, we find it key to our mission to advance candidates for down ballot races that can stand above this fray and serve their communities.”
Snyder maintains that Forward’s values resonate with a majority of voters, and there is a hunger for more choice and less partisanship – “less win at all costs mentality, where compromise is viewed as evil.”
