A pox on both their houses: that’s apparently the thinking of American voters. A new poll from
The Hill shows that a majority would favor a third party. As for Democrats, 49 percent say they favor a third party, while the total is 46 percent of Republicans and 67 percent of independents.
“That’s probably the strongest number I’ve seen in a poll of people in America saying that they're interested in a third party,” says Democratic pollster Mark Penn of Penn Schoen Berland, which conducted the survey. “There’s a record number of independents and a record number of people looking for a possible third party,” he said. “And that’s a big finding. There’s an opportunity here.”
Republican strategist Mark McKinnon (pictured) agrees. “I think there’s a greater potential for a third party than perhaps [at] any time in our history,” he says. “There is a very broad level of dissatisfaction throughout the electorate — right, left and middle.”