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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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Third-Party Picks Causing Barely a Ripple

Barr, Nader not polling high enough to be game-changers

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(Newser) – Third-party candidates across the nations are highly unlikely to siphon off anywhere near a significant number of votes this election day, Time reports. Libertarian Bob Barr is polling around 1%—down from a peak of 6% in the summer—with Ralph Nader faring the same. The longshot candidates say their goal is not to act as spoilers, but to make discontent heard and to reform the electoral process.

One state where a third-party candidate could make a difference is Bob Barr's home state of Georgia, where the former GOP congressman could claim to have played a central role if McCain slumps to defeat there. "The Libertarian Party is a feather," observed one political science professor. But "if a scale is finely balanced, then a feather can make a difference."

Ralph Nader speaks during a news conference, last month in Des Moines, Iowa.
Ralph Nader speaks during a news conference, last month in Des Moines, Iowa.   (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Ralph Nader chats with a supporter as he makes his way to his next stop last month outside a pastry shop in Medford, Mass.
Ralph Nader chats with a supporter as he makes his way to his next stop last month outside a pastry shop in Medford, Mass.   (AP Photo/Lisa Poole)
Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr speaks to an audience in a classroom on the Duke University campus in Durham, N.C., last week.
Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr speaks to an audience in a classroom on the Duke University campus in Durham, N.C., last week.   (AP Photo/The News & Observer, Chris Seward)
Jeri Barr, left, looks on as husband Bob Barr accepts the Libertarian presidential nomination at the Libertarian National Convention last May in Denver.
Jeri Barr, left, looks on as husband Bob Barr accepts the Libertarian presidential nomination at the Libertarian National Convention last May in Denver.   (AP Photo/Will Powers)
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I don't know that we'll be a difference maker anywhere. I'm not sure it's going to be that close. - Russ Verney, Bob Barr's campaign manager

Third parties are like that carbon monoxide detector in the hallway. They start beeping because there's something going on that the major parties didn't notice. - Dennis Goldford, professor of politics at Drake University

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