An ex-aide to former President Obama gave a blistering reality check on the effect a third-party candidate could have on President Joe Biden’s re-election bid.
Former Obama deputy chief of staff Jim Messina called to “cut the crap” and face the reality of the threat posed by the No Labels group in an opinion piece published by Politico, asserting that a “third-party candidate can’t win in 2024” and could potentially derail Democrats by handing former President Donald Trump a victory.
“With a rematch between President Joe Biden and Donald Trump almost set in stone, it’s time to put a farce to rest: The notion that a third-party candidate could actually win the presidency in 2024,” Messina began his op-ed.
“The idea that a ‘unity ticket’ featuring a Republican and a Democrat could somehow produce a nominee with ‘a clear path to victory’ is worse than a political fiction. The group behind it, No Labels, is pushing a dangerous lie that would simply serve to put Trump back in the White House,” he continued, referring to the group founded by former Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman.
The CEO of The Messina Group, who ran Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign, pointed to “the last half-century of election results” to drive home his point, contending that “Our political system isn’t designed to support third parties at the presidential level.”
He went on to note that “parties are incentivized to form the largest coalitions possible, which naturally leads to a two-party system,” adding that, at the same time, “many voters don’t want to ‘waste’ their vote on a candidate with no chance of winning, so they default to the major parties.”
“Sure, nearly half of the electorate thinks a third party is necessary, but No Labels mistakenly assumes this means those voters will actually vote for one,” Messina wrote.
However, while the third-party alternative won’t win the election, according to Messina, that person could still have a major impact on the outcome.
“While a third-party candidate can’t win, No Labels could still throw the election to Trump, and it wouldn’t take that many votes,” he wrote.
He pointed to the battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in the last two elections and how small margins in the final vote tallies determined whether Trump or Biden got the victory.
“A No Labels candidate in these states could easily hand the election to Trump,” Messina wrote.
“If we look at who helped Biden win last time, they are the type of voters who might switch parties: Voters who selected a third party in 2016 voted for Biden by 29 percent. Those voters could be the difference for Biden in 2024,” he explained.
Polling and election data make it clear that “the practical effect of having No Labels run a third-party campaign is that Trump would win,” Messina wrapped up, adding that “any argument that a third party can win next year is a false promise, an illusion and a lie spread by people with ulterior motives.”
“The people at No Labels know better than this,” Messina added. “It’s time to cut the crap, believe the data and be honest with the American people. Any well-funded third-party candidate would be a disaster for our republic — and risks putting us on a direct path to a dictatorship.”
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
- Joe Kent’s claim that Charlie Kirk’s last words to him were about Iran is met with anger - March 19, 2026
- Top ‘CBS Evening News’ producer may be on chopping block as ratings plummet to new low - March 19, 2026
- State Department to require bonds of up to $15,000 for visa applications from a dozen more countries - March 19, 2026
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.