The No Labels Party may have a presidential nominee on the Alaska ballot next year.
No Labels, founded by mostly former Democrats and disaffected moderate Republicans, has won ballot access in 10 states, with North Carolina Board of Elections approving it for the 2024 presidential ballot earlier this month.
In Alaska, No Labels has been categorized as a “limited political party.” Per Alaska Statute, a group may file a petition to become a limited political party in the presidential campaign, and can maintain this status if its presidential candidate receives at least 3% of the vote.
A limited political party is a group that organizes for the purpose of selecting candidates for electors for president and vice president, according to statute.
The 10 states where No Labels Party ticket has ballot access are, so far: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, South Dakota and Utah.
“The No Labels movement has achieved a significant milestone, winning ballot access in 10 states,” said civil rights leader Dr. Benjamin J. Chavis, National Co-Chair of No Labels. “This is a historic victory for Americans who have said loud and clear they want more choices at the ballot box. The spirit of democracy is winning in America today.”
Former Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut was the founding chairman of the party in 2009. During his last term in office, (he served from 1989 to 2013), he listed himself as an independent Democrat and caucused with and chaired committees for the Democratic Party. Nancy Jacobson, a former fundraiser for the Democratic Party, became co-founder, president, and CEO of No Labels.
Since its founding, No Labels has been working to dismantle partisanship and “cultivating a spirit of unity among among elected officials from both sides of the aisle. The organization is focused on common-sense policy solutions, practical compromise and cross-party collaboration, aimed at addressing the pressing challenges facing the nation.”
During that time, however, partisanship has only deepened at every level of American politics, even in nonpartisan races.
Sen. Joe Manchin and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski have been much discussed as a possible No Labels ticket for president and Vice President. Manchin is on the right side of the Democratic Party, and Murkowski is on the left side of the Republican Party.
Murkowski fueled that rumor when she said on the record that if the choice is between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, she will vote for Manchin, who is not yet an announced candidate, but who faces an uphill battle if he decides to run for reelection to the Senate. West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, a Republican, leads Manchin, a Democrat, in the polls by 22 points in a hypothetical Senate matchup.
No Labels, which held its first town hall in Manchester, New Hampshire on July 17, featuring Sen. Manchin and Republican former Utah Sen. Jon Huntsman, announced this weekend that it would hold a presidential nominating convention in Dallas, Texas, in April. No details were given about how the party would decide on its nominee.
The video of the first town hall has only garnered about 3,000 views on YouTube:
In a survey the group released last week of registered voters in the top eight presidential battleground states, 63%, said they are open to voting for a moderate independent ticket in the event of a Biden-Trump rematch, the party said. Some 69% of those surveyed supported groups like No Labels getting on the ballot “in case an independent wants to run for president.”
Alaska has four “recognized political parties” — Alaska Democratic Party, Alaska Republican Party, Alaska Libertarian Party and Alaskan Independence Party.
There are also several recognized “political groups,” some of which do not advance a candidate for president, but they have dozens or more registered members. These have applications on file with the Division of Elections: Alliance Party of Alaska, Freedom Reform Party, Green Party of Alaska, Moderate Party of Alaska, Patriot’s Party of Alaska, Progressive Party of Alaska, UCES’ Clowns Party, and Veterans Party of Alaska.
The No Labels Party is in the third category of a “limited political party,” along with the Alaska Constitution Party. There are no actual registered members of the No Labels Party in Alaska at this time, because it has no known local sub-organization that has registered with the state Division of Elections.
The presidential election in Alaska is not subject to open primaries or ranked choice voting.
