Founded 2007 (2007) Political position Centrist Colors Blue and Buff | Headquarters Buffalo, New York International affiliation None | |
Ideology Populism
Fiscal conservatism
Classical liberalism | ||
The Modern Whig Party is an American political party founded in 2007. The party describes itself as a mainstream, middle-of-the-road grassroots movement representing voters who do not strictly accept Republican and Democratic positions.
Contents
The party's general platform supports fiscal responsibility, strong national defense, and integrity and pragmatism in government. Members of the party have won a handful of local elections, but did so mostly under other party labels or as independents. In recent years the party has not nominated candidates for any major office. The Modern Whig Party underwent a major overhaul of its structure and leadership in late 2014 and re-launched in the spring of 2015.
Founding
According to The News & Observer, the Modern Whig Party was founded by U.S. troops while they were in "the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan." The Modern Whig Party was organized as a grassroots movement in the beginning of 2007.
Media coverage
In the spring of 2010 Time magazine rated the Modern Whig Party, the U.S. Marijuana Party, the Pirate Party, the Tea Party movement, and the American Secessionists as among the "top 10 most popular alternative political movements worldwide." Opinion columns in The News & Observer have been favorable toward the party.
Membership
The party has a national headquarters and an executive committee based in Washington, D.C.
In its first authentic electoral test, Gene L. Baldassari running on the Modern Whig ticket sought the 14th District seat in the New Jersey Assembly in the November 2, 2009, general election. He received 738 votes for just over 0.6 percent of the vote.
Immediately after the election of November 4, 2008, a push began to attract moderate and conservative Democrats, and members of the Republican Party (GOP) who felt disenchanted with both the GOP's failings and its perception as moving further to the right.
On December 12–13, 2009, the Modern Whig Party held its first national leadership council meeting in Washington, D.C.; fourteen people were in attendance.
On November 5, 2013, Robert Bucholz, running on the Modern Whig Party ticket, was elected as Judge of Election for the Fifth Division in Philadelphia's 56th Ward. He beat Democrat Loretta Probasco by 36 votes to 24. He is the first Whig to be elected to office in any state in nearly 160 years.