The Contentious Role of Third-Party Candidates
Just weeks before the United States presidential election on Nov. 5, 2024, all eyes are on a handful of swing states where the race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris remains tight.
In those states鈥攊ncluding , , , and 鈥攄isaffected progressives may end up choosing third-party candidates such as and . The Biden鈥揌arris administration鈥檚 unequivocal of Israel鈥檚 genocide in Gaza is among the main reasons why some voters feel alienated from Democrats. But issues, such as the high cost of living and low wages, are also central concerns.
Democratic Party stalwarts are blaming and more than Harris, pointing to Trump as an existential threat to democracy. Trump鈥檚 supporters, understanding this, have fueled Stein鈥檚 and West鈥檚 candidacies with money and ballot access.
Rosa Alicia Clemente, Ph.D., an organizer, independent journalist, and scholar-activist, was the 2008 vice presidential candidate for the Green Party. She spoke with 大象传媒 Senior Editor Sonali Kolhatkar on 大象传媒 Presents: Rising Up With Sonali about the role of third-party candidates in the election.
Sonali Kolhatkar
joined 大象传媒 in summer 2021, building on a long and decorated career in broadcast and print journalism. She is an award-winning multimedia journalist, and host and creator of聽大象传媒 Presents: Rising Up with Sonali, a nationally syndicated television and radio program airing on Free Speech TV and dozens of independent and community radio stations. She is also Senior Correspondent with the Independent Media Institute鈥檚 Economy for All project where she writes a weekly column. She is the author of聽Rising Up: The Power of Narrative in Pursuing Racial Justice聽(2023) and聽Bleeding Afghanistan: Washington, Warlords, and the Propaganda of Silence聽(2005). Her forthcoming book is called聽Talking About Abolition聽(Seven Stories Press, 2025). Sonali is co-director of the nonprofit group, Afghan Women鈥檚 Mission which she helped to co-found in 2000. She has a Master鈥檚 in Astronomy from the University of Hawai鈥檌, and two undergraduate degrees in Physics and Astronomy from the University of Texas at Austin. Sonali reflects on 鈥淢y Journey From Astrophysicist to Radio Host鈥 in her 2014聽聽of the same name.
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