Independence Party of New York State

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The Independence Party of New York State is a minor political party in New York and a former state affiliate of the Independence Party of America.^[1] As of September 2019, it was a ballot-qualified party in New York.

Note: This party was previously ballot-qualified in New York. As of March 8, 2022, it is no longer ballot-qualified. The content here reflects the most current information as of March 8, 2022.

Background

Ballot access for political parties

See also: List of political parties in the United States

As of January 2025, there were at least 55 distinct ballot-qualified political parties in the United States. There were 238 state-level parties.^[2] Some parties are recognized in multiple states. For example, both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party are recognized in all 50 states and Washington, D.C..^[3][4][5] Three minor parties were recognized in more than 10 states as of January 2025:

1. Libertarian Party: 38 states
2. Green Party: 23 states^[6]
3. Constitution Party: 12 states^[7]

Although there are dozens of political parties in the United States, only certain parties qualify to have the names of their candidates for office printed on election ballots. In order to qualify for ballot placement, a party must meet certain requirements that vary from state to state. For example, in some states, a party may have to file a petition in order to qualify for ballot placement. In other states, a party must organize around a candidate for a specific office; that candidate must, in turn, win a percentage of the vote in order for the party to be granted ballot status. In still other states, an aspiring political party must register a certain number of voters.

The number of ballot-qualified political parties fluctuates as parties gain or lose qualified status. In addition, some states distinguish between major parties and minor parties. Specific differences between major and minor parties differ from state to state. For example, in all states, major parties are granted access to primary elections. Some states, however, do not permit minor parties to participate in primary elections. Consequently, minor party candidates in these states can run only in general elections.^[3]

The table below lists all ballot-qualified political parties in each state as of January 2025. Click "[show]" to expand the table.^[3]

Independence Party of New York State
Basic facts
Location:	New York
Type:	Political party
Top official:	Frank M. Mackay, Chairman
Website:	Official website

The Independence Party of New York State (IPNY) gained ballot access in 1994 and became the New York affiliate of the national Reform Party in 1995. The IPNY left the Reform Party in 2000 and launched the national Independence Party of America in 2007. Though the status of the national party is unclear as of 2016, the IPNY remains active in New York.^[8][9]

Due to fusion voting laws in New York, the IPNY often endorses major party nominees rather than nominating its own candidates. According to a November 2015 report by the New York State Board of Elections, the IPNY had 476,873 registered voters in the state.^{[8][10][11][12]}

Opponents have noted that a large number of IPNY voters have mistakenly registered with the party in an attempt to register as independent, or unaffiliated, voters. The group acknowledged the misunderstanding and called for a change to the state's voter registration forms in its 2015 legislative agenda.^[8][10]

Platform

The party's stated platform is composed of six main issues:^[13]

• Pragmatic leadership
  "Our goals are to foster balanced, pragmatic leadership."
• New leadership
  "[Our goal is to] drive innovation and change by encouraging a new political prototype of leadership. Ideal candidates are those who have led very successful non-political careers in the private and public sectors."
• Honest government
  "[Our goal is to] drive transformation in government by applying sound management principles to root out waste, abuse and mismanagement at all levels and departments in the bureaucracy."
• Political independence
  "[Our goal is to] be an organization where New York’s growing population of independent-minded and politically aware people may find a home with others of similar views."
• Social issues
  "We believe that positions on social issues e.g. abortion, gay rights, etc. are best determined not by a political party but by individuals. We openly welcome party members who hold varying views on social issues."
• Economic prosperity
  "[Our goal is to] be an organization that will vigorously pursue pro-business policies, fiscally sound government practices and a rational energy agenda that emphasizes independence and fosters economic prosperity for all."

The party's 2015 legislative agenda focused on the following issues:^[8]

• Common Core
  "We strongly ask our Legislative leaders and the Governor to impose a three year moratorium to review the Common Core Curriculum, solicit parent and educator feedback, thoroughly review the associated standardized tests, and make recommended changes to the program’s implementation."
• Voter registration
  " We support a critical revision in the New York State Voter Registration Form. The Party’s leadership recognizes that individuals do sometimes unwittingly register as members of the Independence Party when their intent was...not to register in one of the state-recognized political parties."
• Adult prosecution
  "For the first year, we are supporting a proposal to raise the age of adult prosecution to 18."
• The Dream Act
  "For the second year in a row we support legislation (S2378B/A2597A) that would allow the children of undocumented immigrants to participate in the College Tuition Assistance Program."

Rules and bylaws

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See also: Rules of the Independence Party of New York State

The state party is governed by a set of rules and bylaws. Typically, these give structure to the different levels of organization—local, county, and state committees—and establish protocol for electing committee members. The bylaws also typically give details on the party's process for nominating and sending delegates to the national party convention during presidential elections. The following is a summary of the Independence Party of New York State's rules. This summary focuses on the structure and governance of the party:^[14]

• Party officers include the chairman, five vice chairmen, secretary, treasurer and nineteen at-large members.
• Party officers serve two-year terms.
• The state committee has the authority to charter local county committees.

Leadership

As of February 2016, the Independence Party of New York State did not have an executive director.

The following individuals hold leadership positions with the Independence Party of New York State:^[15]

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Independence Party of New York State'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

See also

• New York
• Ballot access requirements for political parties in New York
• Independence Party of America
• List of political parties in the United States

External links

• Independence Party of New York State homepage

Footnotes

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