Constitution Party (United States) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Constitution Party
Chairman	Jim Clymer
Founded	1990; 34 years ago (1990) (as U.S. Taxpayers' Party) 1999 (1999) (as Constitution Party)
Split from	Republican Party
Headquarters	408 West Chestnut Street, Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17603
Membership (2021)	137,367
Ideology	Christian right Christian reconstructionism Conservatism Fiscal conservatism Paleoconservatism Social conservatism
Political position	Far-right
Colors	Red, white and blue (national colors)      Purple (de facto)
Seats in the Senate	0 / 100
Seats in the House	0 / 435
Governorships	0 / 50
State Upper House Seats	0 / 1,972
State Lower House Seats	0 / 5,411
Other elected offices	24
Politics of United States

The Constitution Party, formerly the U.S. Taxpayers' Party until 1999, is a political party in the United States that promotes a religiously conservative interpretation of the principles and intents of the United States Constitution. The party platform is based on originalist interpretations of the Constitution and shaped by principles which it believes were set forth in the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Constitution and the Bible.

The party was founded by Howard Phillips, a conservative activist, after President George H. W. Bush violated his pledge of "read my lips: no new taxes". During the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections, the party sought to give its presidential nomination to prominent politicians including Pat Buchanan and Ross Perot, but was unsuccessful and instead selected Phillips as its presidential nominee in three successive elections. Michael Peroutka was given the presidential nomination in 2004, followed by Chuck Baldwin in 2008 (although he faced opposition from multiple state affiliates), Virgil Goode in 2012, Darrell Castle in 2016, and Don Blankenship in 2020.

In 2000, Rick Jore became the first member of the party to hold a seat in a state legislature. He was subsequently defeated in the 2000, 2002 and 2004 elections; however, he was later elected to a state legislature in 2006, the first Constitution Party candidate to do so. In 2002, Greg Moeller became the first member of the party to win a partisan election. The Constitution parties of Minnesota and Colorado have both achieved major party status once.

As of November 2022^[update], the Constitution Party has 20 members who have been elected to city council seats and other municipal offices across the United States. In terms of registered members, the party ranks fifth among national parties in the United States.

Formation

During the 1988 presidential election, Republican nominee George H. W. Bush stated "read my lips: no new taxes" at the 1988 Republican National Convention. However, Bush violated that pledge during his presidency. Following the breaking of the no new taxes pledge Howard Phillips announced that he would form a third political party called the U.S. Taxpayers' Party.

Phillips formed his new party through the U.S. Taxpayers Alliance, an organization he had founded and which had affiliates in twenty-five states, using its mailing list to announce the formation of a new party. Phillips also attempted to create a coalition with state affiliates of the American Party, but was rejected. The party was accepted into the Coalition for Free and Open Elections alongside the Freedom Socialist Party. The party launched its first petition drive when Jack Perry started a campaign to appear on the 1991 United States special election ballot in Pennsylvania.

Year	RV.	%	Change
1992	247,995	0.3
1994	246,951	0.3	nil%
1996	306,900	0.4	nil%
1998	317,510	0.4	nil%
2000	348,977	0.4	nil%
2002	325,828	0.4	nil%
2004	367,521	0.4	nil%
2008	438,222	0.4	0.1%
2010	476,669	0.5	nil%
2012	77,918	0.1	0.4%
2016	92,483	0.1	nil%
2018	105,668	0.1	nil%
2020	118,088	0.1	nil%
2021	137,367	0.1	nil%

Platform

Domestic

Electoral College

The Constitution Party's 2016 platform supported retaining the Electoral College and was opposed to establishing a popular vote system to elect the president and vice president of the United States.

Environmental policy

The party believes that "it is our responsibility to be prudent, productive, and efficient stewards of God's natural resources".

The party rejects the scientific consensus on climate change, saying that "globalists are using the global warming threat to gain more control via worldwide sustainable development". According to the party, eminent domain is unlawful because "under no circumstances may the federal government take private property, by means of rules and regulations which preclude or substantially reduce the productive use of the property, even with just compensation".

In regards to energy, the party calls attention to "the continuing need of the United States for a sufficient supply of energy for national security and for the immediate adoption of a policy of free market solutions to achieve energy independence for the United States," and calls for the abolition of the Department of Energy.

Federalism

The party supports the repeal of the Sixteenth Amendment, which allows Congress to tax income derived from interest, dividends, and capital gains, and the Seventeenth Amendment, which requires the direct (popular) election of Senators. The party holds that each state's membership in the Union is voluntary, a stance known as the compact theory.

Fiscal policy

The Constitution Party's 2012 platform called for phasing out social security, and the 2016 platform states that "Social Security is a form of individual welfare not authorized in the Constitution".

The 2012 platform supports reducing the role of the United States federal government through cutting bureaucratic regulation, reducing spending, and replacing the income tax with a tariff-based revenue system supplemented by excise taxes. The party also takes the position that the "imposition [...] of Federal income, payroll, and estate taxes [...] is an unconstitutional Federal assumption of direct taxing authority". The party also supports the prohibition of Fractional-reserve banking and the return to the Gold standard saying quote "The Constitution forbade the States from accepting or using anything other than a Gold and Silver based currency" as stated in the 2016-2020 platform.

Social policy

The party opposes euthanasia and supports the right of states to administer the death penalty.

The Constitution Party believes that charitable giving is most effective when conducted by private parties. Because the authority to administer charity has not been granted to the government in the Constitution, the party maintains that the government has no business being involved in such endeavors. The party opposes federal restrictions on, or subsidization of, medical treatments.

The party supports English as the official language for all governmental business, opposes bilingual ballots, and insists that those who wish to take part in the electoral process and governance of the U.S. be required to read and comprehend basic English as a precondition for citizenship.

In 2009, the Southern Poverty Law Center described the party as a "Patriot Group," a category of parties that "advocate or adhere to extreme anti-government doctrines".

Religion

R. J. Rushdoony, a main figure in Christian reconstructionism, helped write the party's 1992 platform. The 1992 platform stated that "the U.S. Constitution established a republic under God, not a democracy". Christian reconstructionism has been influential in the Constitution Party and calls for the remaking of government and society according to Old Testament Biblical law.

The preamble of the 2004 platform states that the Lordship of Christ Jesus and the Bible are the final authority of law. It also stated that the purpose of the party was to restore American jurisprudence to its biblical and constitutional roots.

Foreign

Trade

The Constitution Party's 2012 platform supports a non-interventionist foreign policy. It advocates reduction and eventual elimination of the role the United States plays in multinational and international organizations such as the United Nations and favors withdrawal of the United States from most treaties, such as NATO, North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the World Trade Organization. The party supports protectionist policies in international trade.

The party also believes in exercising a tariff system to counteract the United States' increasingly negative balance of trade.

Immigration policy

The party in 2012 opposed immigration to the United States without government permission, and sought stricter controls on legal immigration.

The party opposes welfare subsidies and other benefits to undocumented immigrants. It rejects the practice of bestowing U.S. citizenship on children born to illegal immigrant parents while in this country (jus soli), and flatly rejects any extension of amnesty to undocumented immigrants. The Constitution Party additionally calls for the use of the United States military to enforce its strict immigration policy.

Electoral results

President

Year	Presidential nominee	Home state	Previous positions	Vice presidential nominee	Home state	Previous positions	Votes	Notes
1992	Howard Phillips	Virginia	Chairman of The Conservative Caucus Candidate for Massachusetts's 6th congressional district (1970) Candidate for United States Senator from Massachusetts (1978)	Albion W. Knight	Florida	Presiding Bishop of the United Episcopal Church of North America (1989–1992)	43,369 (nil%) 0 EV
1996	Howard Phillips	Virginia	(see above for previous positions) Nominee for President of the United States (1992)	Herbert Titus	Oregon	Lawyer, writer	184,656 (0.2%) 0 EV
2000	Howard Phillips	Virginia	(see above for previous positions) Nominee for President of the United States (1992; 1996)	Curtis Frazier	Missouri	Nominee for United States Senator from Missouri (1998)	98,020 (0.1%) 0 EV
2004	Michael Peroutka	Maryland	Lawyer Founder of the Institute on the Constitution	Chuck Baldwin	Florida	Pastor, radio host	143,630 (0.1%) 0 EV
2008	Chuck Baldwin (campaign)	Florida	Nominee for Vice President of the United States (2004)	Darrell Castle	Tennessee	Lawyer	199,750 (0.2%) 0 EV
2012	Virgil Goode (campaign)	Virginia	Member of the Virginia Senate (1973–1997) Member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia's 5th district (1997–2009)	Jim Clymer	Pennsylvania	Nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania (1994; 1998) Chair of the Constitution Party (1999–2012) Nominee for Attorney General of Pennsylvania (2000) Nominee for United States Senator from Pennsylvania (2004)	122,388 (0.1%) 0 EV
2016	Darrell Castle (campaign)	Tennessee	Nominee for Vice President of the United States (2008)	Scott Bradley	Utah	Nominee for United States Senator from Utah (2006; 2010)	203,069 (0.2%) 0 EV
2020	Don Blankenship	West Virginia	Former CEO of Massey Energy Republican candidate for U.S. Senate from West Virginia (2018)	William Mohr	Michigan	Chairman of the U.S. Taxpayers Party of Michigan	60,023 (nil%) 0 EV

House of Representatives

Election year	No. of overall votes	% of overall vote	No. of representatives	+/-
2000	122,936	0.1	0 / 435
2002	99,306	0.1	0 / 435	0
2004	132,613	0.2	0 / 435	0
2006	68,031	0.1	0 / 435	0
2008	136,021	0.1	0 / 435	0
2010	123,841	0.1	0 / 435	0
2012	118,102	0.1	0 / 435	0
2016	127,376	0.1	0 / 435	0
2018	74,956	nil	0 / 435	0
2020	82,567	0.1	0 / 435	0
2022	44,314	0.04%	0 / 435	0
General election results source:

Senate

Best results in major races

See also

In Spanish: Partido de la Constitución para niños

• List of political parties in the United States
• Paleoconservatism