Conservative Party (United States)

In the United States, the Conservative Party refers to a collection of state-level parties that operate independently and advocate for conservative principles. Currently, there is no national Conservative Party.^[1] Historically, many of these parties emerged from divisions within the Democratic and Republican parties, supporting a variety of conservative ideologies, including fiscal conservatism, social conservatism, states' rights, nationalism, and segregation.

Although there has not been a national Conservative Party, the Republican Party currently follows the conservative ideology, with third parties Constitution Party and American Independent Party following the Paleoconservatism ideology. In the late 1960s, the American Independent Party was rebranded as the American Conservative Party in some states. A separate American Conservative Party was later established in 2008 but was decommissioned in 2016. Meanwhile, the Conservative Party USA was organized on January 6, 2009, as a 527 organization aimed at building and managing state party affiliates under the national Conservative Party USA banner.^{[citation needed]}

State-level parties

Connecticut

In the 1838 and 1839 Connecticut gubernatorial elections, Elisha Phelps, a former Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives, ran as the Conservative Party candidate. He received 2.96% of the popular vote in 1838 and 2.09% in 1839. In the 1842, Luther Loomis ran as the Conservative Party candidate, garnering 1.20% of the popular vote.^{[citation needed]}

New Jersey

Voters in New Jersey may choose to register in the New Jersey Conservative Party (CP-NJ).^[2] As of February 2019, there are 10,610 registered members.^[3]

New York

The Conservative Party of New York State, founded in 1962.^[4] New York state's party has elected two men to the United States Congress:

James L. Buckley, senator in the 94th Congress (1971–77), who caucused with the Republicans;
William Carney, representative in the 96th, 97th, 98th, and 99th congresses (1979–87), who also caucused with the Republicans.

Virginia

Washington

Conservative Party of Washington

Reconstruction-Era South

In the Reconstruction era after the Civil War, former Whigs in several Southern states formed parties with the "Conservative" or "Democratic-Conservative" name. Eventually they all merged into the Democratic Party;^[5]^[6] among them:

Conservative Party (Virginia, 1867) Two representatives elected to the 40th Congress on the Conservative Party ticket.

South Carolina

In 1874, the Conservative Party of South Carolina was established by James Chesnut Jr. to mobilize white voters, as the South Carolina Democratic Party was inactive statewide. A convention of the State Tax Union was convened in Columbia on September 10 to prepare for the upcoming election and address President Ulysses S. Grant's comments on the Ku Klux Klan. Another convention on October 8 endorsed the Independent Republican ticket with a platform focused on honesty in government.^[7]

Although the Independent Republican candidates were defeated in the general election, the Conservatives reduced Republican majorities in the legislature and saw some local success through collaboration with Independent Republicans. This cooperation enabled the election of Edmund W. M. Mackey to Congress from for the 2nd district.^[8] Despite these limited gains, the failure of the Conservative Party in 1874 pushed the Democrats to reorganize, leading to their resurgence in the 1876 elections, which ultimately marked the end of the Conservative Party in South Carolina.

Delaware

In 2009, a Conservative Party of Delaware had a website with a mailing address in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was affiliated with the Conservative Party USA and had no formal leadership. In 2024, the party achieved official recognition after Delaware residents registered as Conservative and met the state’s qualification threshold. Libertarian activist Will McVay, formerly of the Libertarian Party of Delaware, took the opportunity to reorganize the party. In the same year, the party nominated perennial candidate Vermin Supreme and comedian Jonathan Realz for President and Vice President of the United States, while endorsing Jon Roe for the 2024 Delaware Senate election.^[9]^[10]

Illinois

In 2018, Illinois State Senator Sam McCann left the Republican Party to establish the Conservative Party of Illinois for his gubernatorial campaign.^[11] Positioning himself as an "independent conservative," he explained that his candidacy aimed to prevent "two billionaires from Chicago" (Bruce Rauner and J. B. Pritzker) from dominating the general election.^[12] McCann secured his spot on the ballot by gathering 65,000 signatures but ultimately finished third in the general election, receiving 4.23% of the popular vote.^[13]^[14]

References

^ Mark J. Rozell; Ted G. Jelen (2015). American Political Culture: An Encyclopedia vol 3. ABC-CLIO. pp. 207–9. ISBN 978-1-61069-378-3.
^ "New Jersey Conservative Party". Retrieved April 12, 2019.
^ "Statewide Voter Registration Summary" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections. February 28, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
^ "History". Conservative Party of New York. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
^ Michael Perman (2004). The Road to Redemption: Southern Politics, 1869-1879. U of North Carolina Press. pp. 151–53.
^ Sheldon Hackney (2005). Magnolias Without Moonlight: The American South From Regional Confederacy To National Integration. Transaction. p. 30.
^ Reynolds 1969, pp. 281.
^ Reynolds 1969, pp. 283–285.
^ Winger, Richard (2024-09-17). "Former Delaware Libertarian Activist Activates Delaware Conservative Party". Ballot Access News. Retrieved 2024-09-22.
^ Evans, Jordan Willow (2024-08-14). "Vermin Supreme Qualifies for Delaware State Ballot via Conservative Party Nomination". Independent Political Report.
^ Schutz, Paris (April 19, 2018). "Third Candidate Enters Race for Illinois Governor". WTTW.
^ Otwell, Rachel (October 4, 2018). "A Conversation With Sam McCann - Conservative Party Nominee For Illinois Gov". NPR.
^ Garcia, Monique (May 15, 2019). "Third-party governor candidate McCann will get to stay on November ballot". Chicago Tribune.
^ Bremer, Shelby (October 30, 2018). "Pritzker Wins Race for Illinois Governor, Ousting Rauner: NBC News". NBC 5 Chicago.

Works cited

Reynolds, John S. (1969). Reconstruction in South Carolina. Negro University Press. ISBN 0-8371-1638-4.

[1] Mark J. Rozell; Ted G. Jelen (2015). American Political Culture: An Encyclopedia vol 3. ABC-CLIO. pp. 207–9. ISBN 978-1-61069-378-3.

[2] "New Jersey Conservative Party". Retrieved April 12, 2019.

[3] "Statewide Voter Registration Summary" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections. February 28, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.

[4] "History". Conservative Party of New York. Retrieved April 12, 2019.

[5] Michael Perman (2004). The Road to Redemption: Southern Politics, 1869-1879. U of North Carolina Press. pp. 151–53.

[6] Sheldon Hackney (2005). Magnolias Without Moonlight: The American South From Regional Confederacy To National Integration. Transaction. p. 30.

[FOOTNOTEReynolds1969281-7] Reynolds 1969, pp. 281.

[FOOTNOTEReynolds1969283–285-8] Reynolds 1969, pp. 283–285.

[:0-9] Winger, Richard (2024-09-17). "Former Delaware Libertarian Activist Activates Delaware Conservative Party". Ballot Access News. Retrieved 2024-09-22.

[:1-10] Evans, Jordan Willow (2024-08-14). "Vermin Supreme Qualifies for Delaware State Ballot via Conservative Party Nomination". Independent Political Report.

[11] Schutz, Paris (April 19, 2018). "Third Candidate Enters Race for Illinois Governor". WTTW.

[12] Otwell, Rachel (October 4, 2018). "A Conversation With Sam McCann - Conservative Party Nominee For Illinois Gov". NPR.

[13] Garcia, Monique (May 15, 2019). "Third-party governor candidate McCann will get to stay on November ballot". Chicago Tribune.

[14] Bremer, Shelby (October 30, 2018). "Pritzker Wins Race for Illinois Governor, Ousting Rauner: NBC News". NBC 5 Chicago.

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