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GOP, Dems, Keep Wary Eye on Third-Party Presidential Contenders

Steve Herman

   WHITE HOUSE - In next year's U.S. presidential election, most voters
   will have one or more additional choice beyond the nominees of the
   Democratic and Republican parties. And there are indications that a
   relatively obscure third-party candidate has the potential to decide
   the election's outcome.

   That happened in 2016 when a smattering of votes in key battleground
   states in the Midwest enabled Donald Trump to defeat Hillary Clinton,
   who won the overall popular vote, thus capturing the tabulation for the
   Electoral College.

   Like Clinton, then-Vice President Al Gore, also a Democrat, saw his
   Oval Office dreams shattered in 2000 when Green Party candidate and
   consumer activist Ralph Nader tipped the extremely close election of
   2000 in favor of Republican George W. Bush.

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