Press "Enter" to skip to content

Analysis: 2024 Post Election Ballot Access For Alternative Parties

Now that the 2024 presidential election is mostly over, we can start looking at what choices voters will have in 2026. Alternative presidential candidates fared poorly, with Green Party candidate Jill Stein, Libertarian nominee Chase Oliver, and withdrawn candidate Robert Kennedy, Jr., all receiving around 0.4%, and others even less.

As we know, each state has its own election system and rules. In some states, ballot access is solely determined by the presidential election result; in others, that’s not even a consideration. We’ll look at each state individually to see how many options voters will have in terms of political parties, followed by a tally of the number of states where each alternative party has ballot access. Naturally, since the Republicans and Democrats have written all the rules, neither is in danger of losing recognition, so they are omitted from further discussion.

  • District of Columbia

Having ballot access as a party in D.C. means candidate petitions require fewer signatures than those for unaffiliated candidates. The D.C. Statehood Green Party continues to be recognized. Any other alternative party that wants status will need to file for it, have a candidate gather the required number of signatures, and then earn at least 7,500 votes.

  • Hawaii

The Aloha State has a provision that if a party is on the ballot for three elections in a row, either by meeting the vote test or by successful petition, that party remains on the ballot for the next five general elections. The Libertarian and Green parties retain status. A petition of approximately 6,000 signatures will be necessary for any other party to get on the ballot for 2026.

  • Alaska

The Alaska Independence Party and the Libertarian Party are secure in their ballot status, both having in excess of 5,000 voters affiliated with them.  Other parties would need to reach that threshold in order to qualify to run candidates under their label in The North Star State.

  • Arizona

The Libertarian Party maintains its status with a healthy margin in voter registration statistics, but with that recognition comes a petition requirement that was changed in 2015 to include all unaffiliated voters, which hardly affected the establishment party candidates but increased the signature count for those running under the LP banner tenfold. However, the candidates of any group that managed to meet Arizona’s signature requirement for a new party would not have to petition for their nominees, including the Greens and No Labels, who petitioned for 2024 and will continue to be recognized through 2026 (No Labels also has a sufficient number of affiliated voters to maintain status). In short, the LP is on the ballot, but the Arizona Legislature found a way to keep Libertarians from participating in most partisan elections.

  • New Mexico

The New Mexico Libertarian Party, no longer affiliated with the national LP, retains ballot access based on their gubernatorial candidate having received better than 0.5% in 2022. Green nominee Jill Stein appears to have fallen short of the number needed to maintain party status by just six votes. The national LP affiliate, Free New Mexico Party, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation did not pass the vote test but get another chance to do so in the 2026 gubernatorial race. Any other party wanting to be recognized in the Land of Enchantment will need 3,562 signatures on a petition.

  • Oklahoma

The LP nominee for Corporation Commission, Chad Williams, took 7% of the vote, ensuring the Libertarians’ ballot access in the Sooner State through 2028. Any other alternative party that wishes to run candidates here will need 46,938 signatures, equal to 3% of the number of votes in the presidential election.

  • Utah

The Independent American Party candidate for Senate, the Libertarian gubernatorial ticket and AG nominee, the Constitution Party candidate for State Auditor, and the Utah Forward nominee for State Treasurer all met the vote test to retain ballot status. Those four parties will remain; any new organization will need a 2,000-signature petition.

  • Wyoming

The Constitution Party’s Jeff Haggit pulled nearly 3% for U.S. House. Richard Brubaker, the LP nominee, earned 3.7% for the same office. These results keep both organizations recognized as minor parties. 

  • Idaho

A party can maintain its access to the ballot in Idaho by running three or more candidates for state or federal office, which the LP and Constitution Party have done. Any other party wishing to have candidates seek office in the state will need to petition and gather signatures equal to 2% of the number of votes for president.

  • Washington

Only parties whose candidate for president achieved 5% or more of the vote are recognized in Washington. The state has a ‘Top Two’ primary system where candidates for any office except president may use any partisan label they choose. However, Top Two also makes it virtually impossible for any alternative party candidate to move from the primary to the general election when both establishment parties are represented in the race.

  • Montana

Roger Roots for Clerk of the Supreme Court and John Lamb for Secretary of State received in excess of 17,673 votes (5% of the winning gubernatorial candidate’s total), maintaining recognition for the Libertarian Party. Other parties that want to participate in elections in Big Sky Country will need to gather 5,000 signatures, plus a sufficient cushion to protect against potential decertification efforts. If done for 2026, it will also include 2028, as statewide general elections only occur every four years.

  • South Dakota

A result of 5% in the Public Utilities Commissioner race for A. Gideon Oakes keeps the Libertarian Party recognized in the Mount Rushmore State through 2028. Any other party seeking to nominate candidates will need to petition, with a signature requirement of 1% of the total number of voters in the most recent gubernatorial election.

  • North Dakota

The Libertarian presidential nominee fell short of 5%. No other alternative party candidate ran for any qualifying office for ballot access. The LP and any other alternative party will need to petition to be able to run candidates under their label. 7,000 signatures are required.

  • Colorado

One thousand registered voters will maintain party recognition in Colorado. The Libertarian, Constitution, No Labels, Green, Approval Voting, Unity, and Center Parties all meet this requirement. New parties may gather 10,000 signatures, or alternatively, they may choose to meet some organizational requirements and seek to put a candidate for statewide office on the ballot by petition and get 5% of the vote or qualify by the aforementioned thousand voters registered under their label. Major party status requires having a candidate get 10% in the gubernatorial election.

  • Nebraska

With over 17,000 voters affiliated as Libertarian, the LP continues to be recognized in the Cornhusker State. Other parties wanting access will need a petition with signatures equal to 1% of the vote total in the last gubernatorial election.

  • Nevada

Javi Tachiquin in CD-2 and Tim Ferreira in CD-4 met the vote threshold for the Libertarian Party, while Russell Best in CD-4 and Lynn Chapman in CD-2 did so for the Constitution Party affiliated Independent American Party. Any others would need to submit a petition with signatures equal to 1% of the vote in each of the state’s four U.S. House districts.

  • West Virginia

Parties attain ballot access by petitioning to get a candidate for governor qualified and having that person get at least 1% of the vote. The Libertarians, Constitution Party, and the Green affiliate Mountain Party were able to surmount this obstacle, this year with Erika Kolenich receiving 2.9% for the LP, CP nominee Marshall Wilson with 2.3%, and Chase Linko-Looper of the Mountain Party getting 1.3%.

  • Kansas

Kansas law requires a party to have a candidate attain 1% of the vote in a statewide race to maintain recognition, but it’s not clear how it applies when the only statewide race is the presidential election, as it was for 2024. The Secretary of State has stated that the vote test does not apply to the presidential race. This keeps the Libertarian, No Labels, and United Kansas parties recognized through 2026. A petition of 2% of the number of voters in the last general election is required for any new party wishing to gain ballot status.

  • Oregon

The Independent and Libertarian Parties have voters affiliated with them in excess of 0.05%, which maintains their minor party status. The Pacific Green, Working Families, Progressive, and Constitution Parties appear to have all met the vote test with a fusion candidate. The We The People Party petitioned for 2024 and gets another election cycle to meet either of the standards. Any other alternative party would need to petition and gather signatures equal to 1.5% of the last gubernatorial vote.

  • Minnesota

Minor party status in the Land of a Thousand Lakes lacks value, as candidates are treated as if they were unaffiliated. The Legal Marijuana Now Party held major party status but was stripped of it by a Democratic Party lawsuit during the election season, even though it was after the Land of a Thousand Lakes had held a presidential primary for them. Additionally, the already high vote test was further increased in a Democrat bill signed by Gov. Tim Walz.

  • California

The Golden State determines party status by registration. The Libertarian, Peace & Freedom, American Independent, and Green parties all continue to meet the requirement. Any other party would need to either get enough people to register as aligned with their organization to equal 0.33% of state voters or do a prohibitively large petition requiring signatures equal to 10% of the number of voters in the last gubernatorial election.

  • Wisconsin

The Libertarian, Green, and Constitution parties retain ballot status due to results in 2022. New parties may petition to get an otherwise unaffiliated candidate on the ballot for statewide office and then try to meet the vote threshold or gather 10,000 signatures for a party petition.

  • Iowa

With none of the alternative presidential candidates able to get 2% of the vote, Iowans have only the establishment parties as recognized organizations in the state. Other parties will need to petition to have their members run for office and will need to have a gubernatorial candidate earn 2% or more in 2026 to attain official status.

  • Texas

The Libertarian and Green Parties are able to maintain status by having candidates receive over 2% for a statewide office, although the Lone Star State has put filing fees and convention requirements in place to make it difficult for alternative party candidates. Other groups would need a petition with signatures equal to 1% of the number of votes in the last gubernatorial election.

  • Florida

The Sunshine State depends on organizational requirements to recognize minor political parties, which allows access for the LP, Greens, Constitution Party, the Party for Socialism & Liberation, Reform Party, Ecology Party, Independent Party of Florida, American Solidarity Party, Boricua Party, Conservative Party, Forward Party, Natural Law Party, Coalition with a Purpose Party, and Jeffersonian Party. No Labels and The People’s Party have disbanded. The Sunshine State’s high filing fees result in few candidates from these alternative parties.

  • Michigan

The Wolverine State allows a party to retain ballot access if one of its candidates achieves a vote total of at least 1% of that received by the winner of the most recent Secretary of State race. The Natural Law, Taxpayers (a Constitution Party affiliate), Working Class, Green, and Libertarian Parties fulfilled this requirement. Any new party would need a petition with signatures equal to 1% of the total vote in the last gubernatorial election.

  • Arkansas

The Libertarian Party, the only alternative party with ballot access in the Natural State, did not reach 3% in the presidential race. 10,000 signatures are necessary to qualify a party.

  • Missouri

Ken Iverson for Lt. Governor, John Hartwig for Treasurer, and Ryan Munro for Attorney General keep the Libertarian Party on the ballot with greater than 2% of the vote. Dani Elliott for Lt. Governor fell about 152 votes short of maintaining status for the Greens. The Better Party candidate for Senator, Jared Young, was well short. Parties other than the LP wanting to participate in elections will need a petition of 10,000 signatures.

  • Maine

The Green, No Labels, and Libertarian parties have greater than 5,000 voters affiliated with them and thus maintain ballot status. New parties would need to nominate a candidate for governor or president by petition and have that candidate receive at least 5% of the vote or get 5,000 voters to affiliate with the new party.

  • Alabama

In the Yellowhammer State, an alternative party must submit a petition with signatures equal to 3% of the last gubernatorial vote, and then, to maintain that status, a party candidate for statewide office must receive at least 20% of the vote. Both requirements are oppressively difficult to meet. 

  • Illinois
    The Land of Lincoln breaks up ballot access into the different political subdivisions. The Working Class, Green, and Libertarian Parties may attain status in some areas, but would need a petition with the signatures of 25,000 voters to gain statewide recognition, as would any other alternative party.
  • Mississippi 
    Political parties in Mississippi must meet some organizational requirements, as established in state law unchanged since 1890. Four alternative parties are currently recognized in the state: Green, Libertarian, Constitution, and No Labels.
  • Indiana

Party recognition in the Hoosier State is attained by a candidate receiving at least 2% of the vote for Secretary of State. To field a candidate, a party must petition and gather signatures equal to 2% of the vote the last time that Secretary of State was on the ballot. The Libertarians have status and have continued to meet the threshold for several elections. No other alternative parties are recognized in Indiana.

  • Louisiana

A political party in the Pelican State needs to have 1,000 voters register with them and pay a fee to be recognized and able to run candidates. The current list of recognized parties includes the Independent Party of Louisiana, the Libertarians, and the Greens.

  • Ohio

The Libertarian Party submitted its petition for 2024 in July. State law only requires the 3% vote test for president or governor at the first election occurring more than twelve months after the party is recognized. Thus, the LP is on in Ohio for 2026. No other party is recognized. The requirement that would need to be met for a party to qualify for ballot access is 1% of the total number of voters in the last presidential or gubernatorial election.

  • Tennessee

In the Volunteer State, a party needs signatures equal to 2.5% of the last gubernatorial vote, gathered in a 90-day period. In contrast, Independents may get on the ballot for president with 275 signatures, or for any other state or federal office with just 25 signatures, and this is what all alternative candidates do. Since 1961, when the current law went into effect, the only time the qualification has been met was with George Wallace’s American Independent Party in 1968.

  • Kentucky

The Bluegrass State requires parties to get at least 2% of the presidential vote in order to be a political organization and 20% to be a political party. With no alternative candidates meeting either threshold, there won’t be another chance for a party to gain recognition until 2028, when presidential candidates can be placed on the ballot by petition.

  • Vermont

Political parties must meet some organizational requirements to attain ballot access in Vermont. The Progressive Party has organized sufficiently to have major party status alongside the Democrats and Republicans. The Libertarian and Green Mountain Peace and Justice parties have minor status. Any other group would need to hold caucuses to elect a committee in at least ten towns, and those committees then must select state officers and delegates.

  • Rhode Island

No alternative party has met the requirement of 5% for statewide office since the Moderate Party met the threshold in 2014. Any party that seeks recognition will need to do a petition and gather signatures equal to 5% of the presidential vote. The fairly low petition requirements for Independents, combined with the ability to use a party label, mean most alternative candidates are able to use that process.

  • North Carolina

The Tar Heel State allows parties that placed their presidential candidate on ballots in at least 70% of states to continue to be recognized. The Libertarians and Greens did this, but other parties will need to petition, with a requirement of signatures equal to a quarter of a percent of the number of voters in the last gubernatorial election.

  • New York

The Empire State allows fusion, where a candidate can be the nominee of more than one party, and gives each recognized party a ballot line. The Conservative Party nominated Trump along with the GOP, and Harris was nominated by the Working Families Party as well as the Democrats. Both of these alternative parties were able to receive enough votes on their separate ballot lines to maintain status under the much more restrictive requirements passed by the Legislature at then-Gov. Cuomo’s instigation in 2020. Other alternative parties will be faced with petitioning for 45,000 signatures to get a gubernatorial candidate on the ballot for 2026 and needing to get 130,000 votes for their candidate to regain status.

  • Virginia

To be recognized in Virginia, a political party must nominate a statewide candidate by petition, collecting 10,000 signatures, and then have that candidate secure at least 10% of the vote. This requirement has proven difficult for alternative party candidates, as no candidate from a non-major party has met the 10% threshold in Virginia since the 1960s.

  • New Hampshire

No alternative parties met the 4% vote threshold for governor or U.S. Senate necessary to have continued ballot status, and so any party wanting candidates on the ballot in the Granite State will need to petition and gather signatures equal to 3% of the number of votes in the last state general election.

  • South Carolina

The Palmetto State lets a party maintain ballot status if they adhere to the organizational requirements and have some candidates for office at least every other election. Thus, the Alliance, Constitution, Forward, Green, Libertarian, United Citizens, and Workers parties are all recognized. New parties would need to turn in a petition with 10,000 signatures, as well as meet the organizational rules.

  • Maryland

The Old Line State allows a party to stay on the ballot for two general elections after gaining recognition, guaranteeing continued status for No Labels and the Greens. Any new party, including the Libertarians, who had ballot access through 2024, will need a petition with 10,000 signatures to gain status.

  • Massachusetts

No alternative candidates met the threshold of 3% of the vote for statewide office, nor is there any alternative party likely to attract voter registration of 1%. However, the requirements for all candidates are the same, and a person running for office may use the political designation of their choice if they are not affiliated with any recognized party.

  • Connecticut

The Nutmeg State stipulates that parties either achieve a total of 20% of the gubernatorial vote or 20% voter registration to attain major party status or qualify for each office individually through a candidate getting at least 1% for that office. Four alternative parties currently have some level of recognition: the Libertarian, Green, Working Families, and Independent parties. However, only the Working Families Party has full ballot access.

  • Georgia

No party met the vote threshold to maintain ballot access in Georgia. A petition of 1% of registered voters would be necessary to field statewide candidates, but this petition would not also qualify candidates for other offices, including U.S. House. No alternative candidate has been able to get a place on the ballot for U.S. House in Georgia since 1964.

  • New Jersey

All candidates must petition to get on the ballot, regardless of party, but to be recognized by the state, a party must have its candidates for the General Assembly receive 10% of the total vote for all legislative offices in the Assembly. This is a requirement that no alternative party can expect to meet anytime soon, but petitioning candidates may use a party label.

  • Pennsylvania

Alternative candidates wishing to run in the 2026 elections will need to petition and gather a significantly larger number of signatures, equal to 2% of the 2024 vote in the district, compared to establishment party candidates.

  • Delaware

The First State requires a party to first attain voter registration of 0.1% to be recognized as a minor party and 5% to become a major party. The Independent, Libertarian, No Labels, Conservative, Green, and Liberal parties meet the lower threshold.

Party NameNumber of StatesNotes
Libertarian Party32 states
Green Party15 states
Constitution Party11 statesThe Constitution Party of Idaho is disaffiliated.
No Labels7 states
Working Families Party5 states
Forward Party3 states
Working Class Party2 states
Natural Law Party2 states
Number of States Where Each Party Has Ballot Access
Party NameState With Ballot Access
Alaska IndependenceAlaska
AllianceSouth Carolina
American IndependentCalifornia
American SolidarityFlorida
Approval VotingColorado
BoricuaFlorida
CenterColorado
Coalition with a PurposeFlorida
ConservativeDelaware
ConservativeFlorida
ConservativeNew York
Constitution (Disaffiliated from the national CP)Idaho
EcologyFlorida
Green Mountain Peace and JusticeVermont
IndependentConnecticut
IndependentDelaware
IndependentFlorida
IndependentLouisiana
IndependentOregon
Independent AmericanUtah
JeffersonianFlorida
LiberalDelaware
New Mexico Libertarian Party (Disaffiliated from the national LP)New Mexico
Peace & FreedomCalifornia
ProgressiveOregon
ProgressiveVermont
ReformFlorida
Socialism & LiberationFlorida
United CitizensSouth Carolina
United KansasKansas
UnityColorado
WorkersSouth Carolina
Parties on the Ballot in a Single State

7 Comments

  1. Jeff Coleman January 4, 2025

    Missouri’s official results reveal that the Greens missed ballot access by only eight votes rather than 152.

  2. Chris Powell January 1, 2025

    Andy, you’re right that it’s 0.1% of registered voters for a party in Hawaii, I must have missed that in trying to figure out their weird ten year rules and who still qualifies and who doesn’t.
    Habibi, I did write that part about the popular vote results and some time ago and didn’t go back and update before submitting it.
    Nuña, I haven’t any idea about New Mexico’s recount process but the 4,311 number is billed as official so I must assume there’s no changing it now short of a nigh unobtainable court decision. And since Stein was reported as having 4,319 votes at one point but that has been reduced, it seems that scrutiny of the ballots and/or the count worked against the Greens rather than for them which would not make me optimistic that they could find some additional votes at this point.

  3. Habibi January 1, 2025

    0.4% is outdated. Stein rounds up to 0.6 and Kennedy 0.5. Only Oliver rounds down to 0.4 although they all started closer to that mark before more votes were tallied.

  4. Andy January 1, 2025

    The petition signature requirement for a political party to get on the ballot in Hawaii is around 861 valid signatures and they are due in February of the even year. The requirement cited above must be for a statewide independent candidate, which has a later deadline than the party petition but which requires a lot more signatures.

  5. Nuña January 1, 2025

    A margin small enough (by a factor ~385) to trigger an automatic recount… had it been between the duopoly candidates.

    Not that I care about the watermelons retaining ballot access, but out of curiosity – what recourse, if any, exists in New Mexico for a candidate who is nowhere close to winning to request a recount, or for appealing the validity of, say, six or seven rejected ballots?

  6. Chris Powell January 1, 2025

    If you look at the official results on the website of the New Mexico Secretary of State (https://electionresults.sos.nm.gov/) you will see that Jill Stein is recorded as receiving 4,311 votes. 923,403 votes were cast in the presidential election in New Mexico. One half of one percent is 4,317. I don’t know why Stein was recorded as having as many as 4,319 votes at one point, but the 4,311 number is billed as the official count.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

eleven − 10 =

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.