The Reform Party of the United States of America (RPUSA) was founded in 1995 by Ross Perot. Because the party had just recently been formed, the traditional system of presidential primaries in use by the Republican and Democratic parties was not considered practical for the Reform Party to use for its presidential primary in 1996. Instead, a national primary was held through the mail in which Reform Party supporters voted for a number of candidates, while ballot efforts were concentrated entirely towards the general election.
During the 1996 presidential primaries, the Reform Party was seeking an alternative candidate to party founder Ross Perot, who stated he didn't plan on running for president again. Reform Party activist Mark Sturdevant urged Colorado GovernorRichard Lamm to seek the party's nomination. Initially hesitant, Lamm decided that if Ross Perot didn't run then he would enter the presidential race.[1]
Lamm was assured Perot had no intention of running, and he entered the Reform Party's primaries on June 9, with Ed Zschau as his running mate.
Lamm remained a registered member of the Democratic Party, stating: "you can't become a member of the Reform Party in Colorado. There is no Reform Party in Colorado.... I can participate by staying a Democrat. I couldn't become a member of the Reform Party if I wanted to, but I am encouraging people to sign petitions so that they can get on the ballot here in Colorado. We've got to be on the ballot in all 50 states."[2]
On March 19, Perot hinted that he may enter the Reform Party presidential primaries.[3] Later that summer, Perot announced his presidential candidacy. Most Reform Party members supported Perot, and he was the overwhelming victor during the primaries.
Lamm addressed the Reform Party's 1996 National Convention, held in Long Beach, California. In his speech, he criticized President Bill Clinton, saying: "no nation has ever borrowed its way to greatness!" He also blasted Political Action Committees for running dishonest commercials, and stated he hoped the Reform Party would become a "truth telling, straight talking political party... run by ordinary citizens."[4]
His speech received a standing ovation, and he congratulated Ross Perot on his primary victory.
^"Reform Party Convention Acceptance Speeches | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org.
August 24, 2023
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The Reform Party of the United States of America RPUSA was founded in 1995 by Ross Perot Because the party had just recently been formed the traditional system of presidential primaries in use by the Republican and Democratic parties was not considered practical for the Reform Party to use for its presidential primary in 1996 Instead a national primary was held through the mail in which Reform Party supporters voted for a number of candidates while ballot efforts were concentrated entirely towards the general election 1996 Reform Party presidential primaries1996 2000 Nominee Ross Perot Richard LammHome state Texas ColoradoRunning mate n a Ed ZschauStates carried 47 3 D C Popular vote 32 145 17 121Percentage 65 3 34 8 Mail In Presidential Primary results map Contents 1 Candidates 2 The mail in primary 3 Results by state 4 ReferencesCandidates Edit Party Founder Ross Perot of Texas Former Governor Richard Lamm of Colorado campaign The mail in primary EditIn 1995 former presidential candidate Ross Perot s lobbying group United We Stand America decided to become a political party Thus the Reform Party of the United States of America was created During the 1996 presidential primaries the Reform Party was seeking an alternative candidate to party founder Ross Perot who stated he didn t plan on running for president again Reform Party activist Mark Sturdevant urged Colorado Governor Richard Lamm to seek the party s nomination Initially hesitant Lamm decided that if Ross Perot didn t run then he would enter the presidential race 1 Lamm was assured Perot had no intention of running and he entered the Reform Party s primaries on June 9 with Ed Zschau as his running mate Lamm remained a registered member of the Democratic Party stating you can t become a member of the Reform Party in Colorado There is no Reform Party in Colorado I can participate by staying a Democrat I couldn t become a member of the Reform Party if I wanted to but I am encouraging people to sign petitions so that they can get on the ballot here in Colorado We ve got to be on the ballot in all 50 states 2 On March 19 Perot hinted that he may enter the Reform Party presidential primaries 3 Later that summer Perot announced his presidential candidacy Most Reform Party members supported Perot and he was the overwhelming victor during the primaries Lamm addressed the Reform Party s 1996 National Convention held in Long Beach California In his speech he criticized President Bill Clinton saying no nation has ever borrowed its way to greatness He also blasted Political Action Committees for running dishonest commercials and stated he hoped the Reform Party would become a truth telling straight talking political party run by ordinary citizens 4 His speech received a standing ovation and he congratulated Ross Perot on his primary victory Results by state EditStates won by H Ross PerotStates won by Richard LammH Ross Perot Richard Lamm Margin State TotalState Alabama 188 65 96 97 34 04 91 31 92 285 ALAlaska 40 45 98 47 54 02 7 7 96 87 AKArizona 541 65 98 279 34 02 262 31 96 820 AZArkansas 124 70 06 53 29 94 71 40 12 177 ARCalifornia 11 174 64 46 6 161 35 54 5 013 28 92 17 335 CAColorado 318 18 28 1 422 81 72 1 104 63 44 1 740 COConnecticut 296 72 37 113 27 63 183 44 74 409 CTDelaware 108 69 23 48 30 77 60 38 46 156 DED C 22 40 74 32 59 26 10 18 52 54 DCFlorida 2 981 76 24 929 23 76 2 052 52 48 3 910 FLGeorgia 467 60 89 300 39 11 167 21 78 767 GAHawaii 75 66 96 37 33 04 38 33 92 112 HIIdaho 190 53 82 163 46 18 27 7 64 353 IDIllinois 601 66 41 304 33 59 297 32 82 905 ILIndiana 773 73 62 277 26 38 496 47 24 1 050 INIowa 96 62 34 58 37 66 38 24 68 154 IAKansas 678 64 45 374 35 55 304 28 90 1 052 KSKentucky 310 71 43 124 28 57 186 42 86 434 KYLouisiana 65 82 28 14 17 72 51 64 56 79 LAMaine 915 66 35 464 33 65 451 32 70 1 379 MEMaryland 306 54 64 254 45 36 52 9 28 560 MDMassachusetts 353 59 03 245 40 97 108 18 06 598 MAMichigan 726 71 04 296 28 96 430 42 08 1 022 MIMinnesota 281 41 51 396 58 49 115 16 98 677 MNMississippi 63 80 77 15 19 23 48 61 54 78 MSMissouri 401 72 25 154 27 75 247 44 50 555 MOMontana 137 60 62 89 39 38 48 21 24 226 MTNebraska 111 60 99 71 39 01 40 21 98 182 NENevada 235 72 53 89 27 47 146 45 06 324 NVNew Hampshire 173 65 53 91 34 47 82 31 06 264 NHNew Jersey 455 75 71 146 24 29 309 51 42 601 NJNew Mexico 123 53 02 109 46 98 14 6 04 232 NMNew York 794 69 10 355 30 90 439 38 20 1 149 NYNorth Carolina 458 61 39 288 38 61 170 22 78 746 NCNorth Dakota 136 63 85 77 36 15 59 27 70 213 NDOhio 1 059 74 32 366 25 68 693 48 64 1 425 OHOklahoma 1 237 70 36 521 29 64 521 40 72 1 758 OKOregon 269 65 61 141 34 39 128 31 22 410 ORPennsylvania 752 70 94 308 29 06 444 41 88 1 060 PARhode Island 47 69 12 21 30 88 26 38 24 68 RISouth Carolina 552 67 15 270 32 85 282 34 30 822 SCSouth Dakota 69 68 32 32 31 68 37 36 64 101 SDTennessee 187 76 02 59 23 98 128 52 04 246 TNTexas 1 877 72 70 705 27 30 1 172 45 40 2 582 TXUtah 88 59 86 59 40 14 29 19 72 147 UTVermont 31 65 96 16 34 04 15 31 92 47 VTVirginia 239 66 76 119 33 24 120 33 52 358 VAWashington 272 68 86 123 31 14 149 37 72 395 WAWest Virginia 78 72 22 30 27 78 48 44 44 108 WVWisconsin 417 71 16 169 28 84 248 42 32 586 WIWyoming 254 55 46 204 44 54 50 10 92 458 WYTOTALS 32 145 65 25 17 121 34 75 15 024 30 50 49 266 USReferences Edit Benjamin Pat 2007 The Perot Legacy A New Political Path iUniverse Inc US ISBN 978 0 595 70214 5 Online NewsHour Richard Lamm June 10 1996 PBS Archived from the original on 1999 11 17 The Political Fray CNN Reform Party Convention Acceptance Speeches C SPAN org www c span org Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1996 Reform Party presidential primaries amp oldid 1129826336, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
