American Independent Party facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids American Independent Party

Chairman	Victor Marani (CA)
Vice Chairman	James Mallamace
Founders	Bill Shearer Eileen Knowland Shearer
Founded	July 8, 1967; 57 years ago (1967-07-08)
Split from	Democratic Party Republican Party
Headquarters	PO Box 1479. Freedom, California 95019
Ideology	American nationalism Anti-communism Paleoconservatism Right-wing populism Formerly, now factions: Populism Economic populism Syncretic politics
National affiliation	American Independent Party
Slogan	"No North, No South, No East, No West - One Great Nation, Heaven Blessed!"
State Senate	0 / 40
State House	0 / 80
Party flag

Politics of California

The American Independent Party (AIP) is a political party in the United States. It was started in 1968.

The party split in 1976. This led to the creation of the American Party, while the American Independent Party continued. From 1992 to 2008, the AIP was connected to the national Constitution Party. A disagreement about leadership happened within the AIP around the 2008 election.

The party is known for supporting candidates who run without being part of the main political parties. In April 2024, the AIP chose Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as their presidential candidate and Nicole Shanahan as his running mate.

A Look Back: The Party's History
Who Did They Support for President?
Important Leaders of the Party
Why Some People Join by Mistake
See also

A Look Back: The Party's History

The Start: George Wallace's Campaign

Wallace's 1969 AIP party card, showing annual dues of $3.00 for the organization

In 1967, Bill Shearer and his wife, Eileen Knowland Shearer, started the AIP. They chose George C. Wallace as their presidential candidate. He was a Democrat. They picked retired U.S. Air Force General Curtis E. LeMay, a Republican, as the vice-presidential candidate.

Wallace ran in every state election. However, he was not always listed as representing the American Independent Party. For example, in Connecticut, he was on the ballot as the nominee of the "George Wallace Party." The Wallace/LeMay team received 13.5 percent of the votes. They also won 46 electoral votes from states like Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama. Since 1968, no other third-party candidate has won more than one electoral vote.

In 1969, people from 40 states formed the American Party. This party was meant to take over from the American Independent Party. In some places, like Connecticut, it was called the American Conservative Party.

The party's flag was adopted on August 30, 1970. It shows an eagle holding arrows over a compass rose. A banner at the eagle's base says "The American Independent Party."

In 1972, the American Party chose Republican Congressman John G. Schmitz from California for president. They picked Tennessee author Thomas Jefferson Anderson for vice president. This team received over 1.1 million votes. This was the most votes the party ever got after Wallace's run.

After the 1976 Split

In 1976, the American Independent Party split again. One part became the more moderate American Party. This group included more conservatives from the northern states and Schmitz supporters. The other part remained the American Independent Party, focusing on the Deep South.

Both parties have nominated candidates for president and other positions. However, neither the American Party nor the American Independent Party has had much success across the country. The American Party has not been on the ballot in any state since 1996.

In the early 1980s, Bill Shearer led the American Independent Party to join the Populist Party. From 1992 to 2008, the American Independent Party was the California branch of the national Constitution Party.

Leadership Changes and Challenges

A disagreement about who was in charge of the American Independent Party happened during the 2008 presidential campaign. One group recognized Jim King as the chairman. The other group recognized Ed Noonan as the chairman.

Noonan's group decided to leave the Constitution Party. They joined a new party called America's Party. This party was created by Alan Keyes for his own presidential campaign. Since Noonan was officially listed as the party chairman in California, Keyes was added to the state ballots as the AIP candidate.

After this split, the Noonan group kept control of the party's activities and ballot access in California. The party did not nominate Chuck Baldwin (the 2008 Constitution Party candidate) or Virgil Goode (the 2012 nominee). Because of this, both candidates could not get on the California presidential ballot as independent candidates.

Who Did They Support for President?

The American Independent Party has supported various candidates for president over the years. Here's a look at some of them:

Year	Presidential nominee	Home state	Previous jobs	Vice presidential nominee	Home state	Previous jobs	Votes
1968	George Wallace	Alabama	Governor	Curtis LeMay	California	Air Force Chief of Staff	9,906,473 (13.5%) 46 EV
1972	John G. Schmitz	California	U.S. Representative	Thomas J. Anderson	Tennessee	Magazine publisher	1,099,482 (1.4%) 0 EV
1976	Lester Maddox	Georgia	Governor of Georgia	William Dyke	Wisconsin	Mayor of Madison	170,531 (0.2%) 0 EV
1980	John Rarick	Louisiana	U.S. Representative	Eileen Shearer	California	Party co-founder	41,268 (<0.1%) 0 EV
1984	Bob Richards	Texas	Olympic athlete	Maureen K. Salaman	California	Writer, nutritionist	66,336 (0.1%) 0 EV
1988	James C. Griffin	Texas	Candidate for Senator/Governor	Charles Morsa	California		27,818 (<0.1%) 0 EV
1992	Howard Phillips	Virginia	Chairman of The Conservative Caucus	Albion W. Knight	Florida	Bishop	43,369 (<0.1%) 0 EV
1996	Howard Phillips	Virginia	Chairman of The Conservative Caucus	Herbert Titus	Oregon	Lawyer, writer	184,656 (0.2%) 0 EV
2000	Howard Phillips	Virginia	Chairman of The Conservative Caucus	Curtis Frazier	Missouri	Candidate for Senator	98,020 (0.1%) 0 EV
2004	Michael Peroutka	Maryland	Lawyer	Chuck Baldwin	Florida	Pastor, radio host	143,630 (0.1%) 0 EV
2008	Alan Keyes	New York	Assistant Secretary of State	Wiley Drake	California	Minister, radio host	47,694 (<0.1%) 0 EV
2012	Tom Hoefling	Iowa	Activist	Robert Ornelas	California	Activist	40,641 (<0.1%) 0 EV
2016	Donald Trump	New York	Businessman	Mike Pence	Indiana	U.S. Representative, Governor	62,984,825 (46.1%) 304 EV
2020	Rocky De La Fuente	California	Businessman	Kanye West	Wyoming	Rapper, producer	60,160 (0.34%) 0 EV
2024	Robert F. Kennedy Jr.	District of Columbia	Environmental lawyer	Nicole Shanahan	California	Attorney	TBD

Important Leaders of the Party

Here are some of the people who have led the American Independent Party:

Bill Shearer: 1967–1999
Nathan Johnson: 1999–2002
Jim King: 2002–2004
Nancy Spirkoff: 2004–2006
Edward C. Noonan/Mark Seidenberg: 2006–2008
Disputed: Jim King and Markham Robinson claimed chairmanship: 2008–2024
Victor Marani/James Mallamace: 2024–current

Why Some People Join by Mistake

In 2016, about 3% of California's voters were registered with the American Independent Party (AIP). This made it the third-largest political party in the state by registration. It was behind the Democratic and Republican parties.

However, many political experts believe that the party keeps its official status because people accidentally join it. They think they are registering as "independent" voters. In California, choosing to be an "independent" voter is officially called "no party preference."

A 2016 investigation by the Los Angeles Times suggested that many AIP voters might have joined by mistake. They thought they were signing up as independent, unaffiliated voters. A survey of AIP-registered voters showed that most of them did not mean to join the party. The investigation pointed out that the party's name can be confusing.

The survey found that 73% of AIP voters saw themselves as having "no affiliation." Another 3% said they were "undecided." When they learned about the AIP's beliefs, 50% of these voters wanted to leave the party. Famous people like Sugar Ray Leonard, Demi Moore, Emma Stone, and Kaley Cuoco have also made this mistake. In 2008, Jennifer Siebel also tried to change her party to unaffiliated. She "checked the American Independent box thinking that was what independent voters were supposed to do."

This confusion means that people who accidentally join the AIP cannot vote in presidential primary elections. In past years, they could not vote in other party primary elections either, except for the AIP's own. Many California election officials have worried about the confusion caused by the party's name.

However, things have changed. Since 2012, California has a "top-two" primary system. This means all voters can take part in non-presidential primary elections. Also, voters can now re-register to a different party on election day. This helps to fix the problem.