Americans Elect, the independent group founded by centrist political strategists and dedicated to drafting a third party candidate into the presidential race, will not choose a nominee at all this year. Its online primary process was hampered by a lack of interest, producing too few votes to meet their own threshold to select a candidate.
Here’s the statement from the group announcing the decision:
There is a desire among Delegates and millions of Americans who have supported Americans Elect to see a credible candidate emerge from this process.
However, the rules, as developed in consultation with the Americans Elect Delegates, are clear. As of this week, no candidate achieved the national support threshold required to enter the Americans Elect Online Convention in June. The primary process for the Americans Elect nomination has come to an end.
Americans Elect, from the outset, has been a rules-based process, with the rules publicly available and open to debate by the Delegates. Our key priorities have been to: 1) honor the trust Americans Elect has built with the Delegates and American public; 2) require candidates to earn the nomination by building support among the Americans Elect Delegate community and American voters; and 3) create a basis for a solid future for the Americans Elect movement.
This decision honors these priorities.
Through the efforts of thousands of staffers, volunteers and leadership, Americans Elect has achieved its operational goals, including:
· Creating a pathway for nationwide ballot access for a balanced presidential ticket
unaffiliated with the nominating process of either major party to compete in the
2012 race;
· Building the technological platform for the first nonpartisan secure national online
primary at AmericansElect.org;
· Attracting a significant base of more than 4 million supporters, including Delegates,
petition signers and volunteers;
· Educating the national and local media on the Americans Elect mission; and
· Finishing an extensive candidate briefing program involving more than 100
potential candidates.As always, we thank everyone who has helped build this organization and are grateful for the work, efforts, and trust so many people have placed in Americans Elect. We are continuing the Americans Elect mission of creating more choice in our political system, giving candidates unaffiliated with the nominating process of either major party an authentic way to run for office and giving the American people a greater voice in our political process.
