Socialist Workers Party

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Election Policy Logo.png
Ballot access for major and minor party candidates
Ballot access for presidential candidates
List of political parties in the United States
Ballotpedia's election legislation tracker
Public Policy Logo-one line.png
Note: For more information on running for office or forming a political party, contact your state election agency.

The Socialist Workers Party is a political party. According to the organization, the SWP aims to propose "a working-class way forward out of the dog-eat-dog, crises-ridden capitalist system." The group is headquartered in New York, New York.[1]

Background

Ballot access for political parties

See also: List of political parties in the United States


As of January 2025, there were at least 55 distinct ballot-qualified political parties in the United States. There were 238 state-level parties.[2] Some parties are recognized in multiple states. For example, both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party are recognized in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. These two parties account for more than half of the 238 total state-level parties.[3][4][5] Three minor parties were recognized in more than 10 states as of January 2025:

  1. Libertarian Party: 38 states
  2. Green Party: 23 states[6]
  3. Constitution Party: 12 states[7]

Although there are dozens of political parties in the United States, only certain parties qualify to have the names of their candidates for office printed on election ballots. In order to qualify for ballot placement, a party must meet certain requirements that vary from state to state. For example, in some states, a party may have to file a petition in order to qualify for ballot placement. In other states, a party must organize around a candidate for a specific office; that candidate must, in turn, win a percentage of the vote in order for the party to be granted ballot status. In still other states, an aspiring political party must register a certain number of voters.

The number of ballot-qualified political parties fluctuates as parties gain or lose qualified status. In addition, some states distinguish between major parties and minor parties. Specific differences between major and minor parties differ from state to state. For example, in all states, major parties are granted access to primary elections. Some states, however, do not permit minor parties to participate in primary elections. Consequently, minor party candidates in these states can run only in general elections.[3]

The table below lists all ballot-qualified political parties in each state as of January 2025. Click "[show]" to expand the table.[3]

Socialist Workers Party National Committee

The Socialist Workers Party National Committee (SWPNC) provides national leadership for the Socialist Workers Party. It is responsible for adopting the party platform, developing political strategy, and organizing party outreach. Members of the SWPNC do not elect committee officers.[8]

History

The Socialist Workers Party was established in 1938 as an offshoot of the Socialist Party of America. The group adhered to the socialist and marxist ideology of Leon Trotsky and participated in the Trotskyist global network, Fourth International. The party experienced a number of ideological disagreements and factional splits over the course of the 20th century. During the 1980s, the SWP shifted from its Trotskyist roots and embraced a platform in support of the communist revolutionary ideology of the Cuban Revolution.[9][10]

The SWP has been exempt from federal campaign contribution reporting requirements since 1974. The exemption aimed to guard party donors from public harassment and protect their right to free speech. The Federal Election Commission has repeatedly extended the exemption, most recently approving an exemption through 2016.[11]

The SWP publishes The Militant, a weekly socialist newspaper, and New International, a marxist political magazine.[12][13]

Party values

The Socialist Workers Party has the following stated values:[1]

  • The working class
    "The SWP strives to advance the class-consciousness and self-confidence of workers as we fight together. We know from history that working people, relying on our own power, solidarity and mobilization, can take over and run the mines, mills, railroads and factories — without the bosses."
  • Labor unions
    "Socialist Workers Party supporters fight within the ranks of labor to transform the unions into effective fighting instruments against the employing class and its government."
  • Imperialism
    "The Socialist Workers Party speaks out against Washington’s imperialist military attacks — from Iraq to Afghanistan to Syria. SWP candidates fight the rulers’ efforts to use workers’ revulsion at Islamic State’s terrorist acts to scapegoat Muslims and roll back workers’ rights."
  • Solidarity
    "The labor movement can become a powerful force for human solidarity — championing the fight for $15 and a union; for a government-funded public works program to create jobs, build schools and medical, child care and recreation centers, replace crumbling infrastructure and other things working people need; the fight for Puerto Rican independence; for free preventative and comprehensive medical care for all; to extend equal protection under the law to women who seek an abortion; to demand that cops who kill or brutalize working people be prosecuted."
  • Abortion
    "The right to decide whether or when to bear children is fundamental to a woman’s right to control her own life and win full social, economic and political equality."[14]
  • Free speech
    "The working class must defend free speech for all. We need it to discuss and debate how to defend ourselves from employer and government attacks."[15]

Leadership

The national secretary of the Socialist Workers Party is Jack Barnes.[8]

The following individuals hold leadership positions with the national Socialist Workers Party:

National committee

Title Officer
Member Jack Barnes
Member Roger Calero
Member Steve Clark
Member Tom Fiske
Member Frank Forrestal
Member Ellie Garcia
Member James Harris
Member Alyson Kennedy
Member Paul Mailhot
Member Mary Martin
Member Omari Musa
Member Dave Prince
Member Norton Sandler
Member Mary-Alice Waters
Member Rebecca Williamson[8][16]

National campaign committee 2016

Title Officer
National campaign director John Studer
Member Alyson Kennedy
Member Chris Hoeppner
Member Janet Post
Member Maggie Trowe
Member Norton Sandler
Member Joel Britton[1]

2016 elections

The Socialist Workers Party nominated Alyson Kennedy as the party's 2016 presidential candidate. The party's vice presidential nominee was Osborne Hart.[1]

In addition to the SWP presidential ticket, the party supported Eleanor Garcia's U.S. Senate campaign in California.[17]

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Socialist Workers Party. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Socialist Workers Party - Google News

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Militant, "Join the 2016 Socialist Workers Party Campaign," accessed March 25, 2016
  2. ↑ This total does not include parties that have attained ballot status at the municipal level. Only those parties with state-level ballot status are included here.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Jaime Healy-Plotkin, "Research of state election agency websites and email correspondence with state election agencies," June 2024
  4. ↑ As of January 2025, there were nine state-level parties that called themselves Independent or Independence parties. For the purposes of this article, these were not tallied when counting the number of distinct ballot-qualified parties in the United States because it is difficult to determine to what extent these various parties are affiliated with one another.
  5. ↑ Because Washington utilizes a top-two, nonpartisan primary system, the state does not officially recognize parties. Consequently, only the state's two largest parties, the Democratic and Republican parties, were included in this tally.
  6. ↑ This figure includes the D.C. Statehood Green Party, Maine's Green Independent Party, Oregon's Pacific Green Party, and West Virginia's Mountain Party.
  7. ↑ This figure includes Nevada's Independent American Party and Michigan's U.S. Taxpayers Party.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Independent Political Report, "The Militant: Socialist Workers Party Holds Convention," July 19, 2014
  9. ↑ Labor Standard, "Making Sense of Trotskyism in the United States: Two Memoirs," accessed March 25, 2016
  10. ↑ Our Campaigns, "Socialist Workers Party," accessed March 25, 2016
  11. ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Socialist Workers Get Break on Donor List," April 26, 2013
  12. ↑ The Militant, "New International magazine," accessed March 25, 2016
  13. ↑ The Militant, "About this site," accessed March 25, 2016
  14. ↑ The Militant, "Defend a Woman's Right to Choose Abortion," March 1, 2016
  15. ↑ The Militant, "Breakup of Trump rally sets back working class," March 12, 2016
  16. ↑ The Militant, "Malcolm X: ‘Capitalism today is more like a vulture,'" February 29, 2016
  17. ↑ The Militant, "Support Eleanor García, SWP candidate for US Senate in Calif.," February 29, 2016
v • e
Political parties in the United States
Major parties
Minor and historical parties
2010 Peace Party • 99% Party • A Connecticut Party • American Constitution Party • American Freedom Party • Alaskan Independence Party • American Labor Party • American Party of South Carolina • American Public Party • American-Laborite Party • Americans Elect • Anti-Prohibition Party • Anti-Trust Democratic Party • Arizona Americans Elect Party • Bull Moose Party • Christian Center Party • Common Sense Party • Conservative Party • Constitution Party • Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party • Democratic-Populist Party • Democratic-Republican • Disability Party • Ecology Democracy Party • Employmentwealth Party • Entrepreneurship Party • Farmer-Labor Party • Free Energy Party • Freedom Party • Fusion Democratic Party • Fusion Party • Glass-Steagall Now • Gold Democratic Party • Grassroots Party • Green Independent Party • Green-Rainbow Party • Happiness Party • Independence Party • Independent American (Nevada) • Iowa Party • Justice for Vermonters Party • Labor Party • Liberal Party • Liberty Union Party • Lower Taxes Party • Maryland Service Party • Moderate Party • Modern Whig Party • Mountain Party • New Independent Party • No Labels • NSA Did 911 • Peace and Freedom Party • People's Party • People's-Democratic Party • Peoples Party • Populist Party • Progressive Democratic Party • Progressive Independent Party • Progressive Party • Progressive-Republican Party • Prohibition Party • Public Ownership Party • Reform Party • Rent is 2 Damn High • Resource Party • School Choice Party • Senior Side Party • Separatist Party • Silver Party • Silver-Democratic Party • Silver-Republican Party • Socialist Party • Socialist Workers Party • Tax Revolt Party • Tea Party • Teller Silver-Republican Party • U.S. Taxpayers Party • United Citizens Party • United States Marijuana Party • Vermont Independence Day Party • Vermont Progressive Party • Vermont-Independence Party • Working Families Party • Wyoming Country Party
Other
v • e
Minor Parties
Parties
A Connecticut Party • Alaskan Independence Party • American Labor Party • American Party of South Carolina • Anti-Trust Democratic Party • Conservative Party • Democratic-Populist Party • Farmer-Labor Party • Fusion Party • Fusion Democratic Party • Gold Democratic Party • Green Party • Independence Party • Independent • Independent Democratic Party • Independent Republican Party • Labor Party • Liberal Party • Libertarian Party • No Labels • Nonpartisan • People's Party • People's-Democratic Party • Populist Party • Progressive Party • Progressive-Republican Party • Prohibition Party • Public Ownership Party • Reform Party • Separatist Party • Silver Party • Silver-Democratic Party • Silver-Republican Party • Socialist Party • Teller Silver-Republican Party
Officeholders
Current independent and minor party federal and state officeholders
Former third party state officeholders from 1900 to 2018: By office • By state • By party
Retrieved from "https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=Socialist_Workers_Party&oldid=9053058"