Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

The Graphic Truth: Third-party US presidential bids

The Graphic Truth: Third-party US presidential bids
Make us preferred on Google

John Adams, the second president of the United States, warned that the domination of the political system by two parties would inevitably become a "great political evil." Looking at the hyper-partisan state of US politics in 2020, it appears that Adams was onto something. Since the mid-1800s, the executive and legislative branches have been dominated by the Republican and Democratic parties. While historically presidential hopefuls outside the mainstream — commonly known as third-party candidates — have failed to make a dent in the two-party system's lock on power, at times they have garnered enough support to significantly impact the way that votes are distributed, thus influencing the outcome. Here's a look at how third-party candidates have performed in US presidential elections since 1992.

More For You

European Union flags are seen outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels April 12, 2006.

European Union flags are seen outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels April 12, 2006.

REUTERS
The European Union is having a moment right now, as a number of countries that once rejected membership are suddenly flirting with the idea. After decades of keeping the bloc at arm’s length, for example, Norway and Iceland are both considering joining. Canada, an ocean away, has forged closer ties to the EU recently. And even the government of [...]
US manufacturers shedding jobs
Natalie Johnson
Investment in manufacturing construction has also fallen 16% during that period, despite public investment pledges of some $900 billion from companies over the past year and a half. Donald Trump has promised to use tariffs, deregulation, and tax cuts to spur a “golden age” of manufacturing in the United States. But despite a modest increase in [...]
​Smoke billows from southern Lebanon

Smoke billows from southern Lebanon, following Israeli strikes, as seen from Nabatieh, Lebanon, June 4, 2026.

REUTERS/Stringer
The Lebanon ceasefire that isn’tLebanon and Israel agreed to a new ceasefire on Wednesday, but there’s just one (ongoing) problem: Israel isn’t fighting “Lebanon.” Rather, it’s fighting the Iran-backed Lebanese militants of Hezbollah, who are beyond the Lebanese military’s control and who have rejected the ceasefire because it would require them [...]
The world is on fire. Why are markets so calm?

US President Donald Trump listens to a question from a reporter prior to signing an executive order on AI next to Sriram Krishnan, Senior White House Policy Advisor on Artificial Intelligence, US Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and David Sacks, chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., USA, on December 11, 2025.

REUTERS/Al Drago
It’s a fascinating moment for world politics and global markets. Geopolitically, the world is in turmoil, primarily because the United States, still the superpower, has become a fundamentally unreliable actor. President Donald Trump is actively pulling apart the international order that Washington built and led over the past 80 years. Yet, [...]