While it remains unclear whether former Democratic candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent White House bid will siphon more votes away from President Joe Biden or presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, another third-party candidate threatens to take a big slice out of the incumbent’s base.
Cornel West, a former Harvard University professor known for his far-left ideology, was initially a Green Party candidate but confirmed in October that he would be going forward as an independent.
This week, he provided another update, this time announcing that he had created a new party.
The so-called “Justice for All Party,” West claimed, would be focused on addressing the “suppression of voter choice” he said has long been a factor in U.S. politics.
Big announcement! We are establishing the JUSTICE FOR ALL PARTY, laying down the roots for proportional representation and expanded voter choice in states where establishing a party is the most expedient — starting with FLORIDA, NORTH CAROLINA, and the state of WASHINGTON! This… pic.twitter.com/KdHv1gK4Ci
— Cornel West (@CornelWest) January 31, 2024
“The party will primarily be utilized as a grassroots, people-powered vehicle to secure ballot access in specific states,” he said. “Additionally, JFA will grow into a larger formation that galvanizes people-powered initiatives to promote transformational change beyond the 2024 election cycle.”
Touting the new party’s opposition to the “era of corporate political parties,” West pledged that the undertaking would follow in the footsteps of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and others “who dared to bear witness to an iniquitous political system and directly confront it.”
Time will tell whether the formation of a new political party will garner West a substantial number of votes in addition to those who were already supporting his independent bid, but previous reports indicated that some prominent Democratic Party insiders were already concerned about his potential impact in the general election.
“This is going to sneak up on people,” said former Obama administration adviser David Axelrod of West’s candidacy in July. “I don’t know why alarm bells aren’t going off now, and they should be at a steady drumbeat from now until the election.”
According to West, his new strategy will allow him to make an even bigger splash in the election than would have been possible as an independent candidate.
“JFA, first and foremost, provides a mechanism for our grassroots campaign to travel a path of least resistance that will require the fewest number of signatures to attain ballot access in states like North Carolina, Florida, and Washington,” his statement asserted. “The campaign acknowledges the unique political climates of each state and respects the decision-making power of the movement in guiding the party’s formation.”
