Third-Party Presidential Candidates 2024

In every election, most of the focus is on Democrats and Republicans. However, there are always third-party candidates in the mix, and though you might not vote for them, many people do, and those votes add up. Often, US third-party Presidential candidates have a distinct effect on the larger race, as they tend to cannibalize the vote for the mainstream party with which they most align.

For this reason, even though American politics is largely a two-party system, third parties remain relevant and important. Voting for third-party candidates is often viewed as a small act of rebellion by disheartened or unsatisfied members of the electorate, and it can send a message and help shape party politics for Democrats and Republicans, particularly when the big boys think such candidates actually tilted the scales in an important election.

Of course, if you want to tilt some scales of your own – of the pocketbook variety – you can bet on third-party Vegas election odds. Just sign up with any of the top offshore books recommended here and cast your “vote” for the underdog that you think has a chance to disrupt the game. As the the 2024 general election nears, you'll see odds for Libertarian Party candidates, Green Party candidates, Independents, and more!

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What Is A Third Party in American Politics?

In US politics, a third party is any political party that isn’t Democratic or Republican. Third-party candidate platforms, then, can run the gamut, and these politicians (and, often, non-politicians) tend to skew to extremes where the two mainstream parties are more or less “in the middle.”

For the most part, the history of third-party candidates is a storied one, and there have been some notable people to fly alternate banners in major elections. From George Washington and Teddy Roosevelt to George Wallace and Ross Perot, 3rd-party Presidential hopefuls have helped shape America.

That said, neither Democrats nor Republicans appreciate third-party challengers because they have the ironic effect of harming the mainstream parties with which they are most similar. The Libertarian Party, an offshoot of the conservative GOP, actually splits the Republican vote and helps Democrats win elections. Likewise, the Green Party is made up of extreme progressive Democrats, and they typically end up helping Republicans win close races.

That’s why, for example, you didn't see a Bernie Sanders third party in 2016 or an Andrew Yang-Tulsie Gabbard ticket in the 2020 election, as these would damage their mainstream party chances. Voters are aware of this third-party issue, and bettors are, too. That’s why Vegas third-party election odds are always going to have huge payouts, as every candidate is a huge longshot.

Current Vegas Odds For Third-Party Candidates

Right now, you are won't find any Vegas odds on third-party candidates for the 2024 Presidential election, as political futures for that far-off race are limited to main party potential candidates. But even when you finally get betting lines for 3rd party noms, you won’t actually be able to bet on them in Vegas.

Remember, Nevada – like every state in America – doesn’t allow political wagering. Vegas bookies simply release hypothetical political lines and election props as bait to get gamblers into their standard sportsbooks.

Fortunately, top-rated offshore sportsbooks advertise and accept bets on politics and elections, and it’s legal, safe, and easy to sign up at any of the reputable sites listed here. Once these sportsbooks release their third-party Presidential election betting lines, this page will be updated accordingly.

Major Third Parties For 2024

As stated, there are only two major 3rd parties at the moment: the Libertarian Party and the Green Party. These are briefly described below, though it's too early to tell who their presumptive nominees will be.

It's also unlikely that former President Donald Trump will start a third party, despite the fact that such an endeavor would probably permanently dismantle the restrictive and limited two-party system of US politics, and millions of voters wish he would go this route (which is, naturally, something you could have bet on at select sportsbooks in the immediate aftermath of the 2020 Presidential election).

Libertarian Party

The Libertarian Party exists on the far right of the American political spectrum, favoring small government, reduced taxation, and increased individual rights and privileges. Of all the more well-known US political parties, the Libertarian movement best represents those voters with “individualistic” ideals.

The most famous third-party candidate of recent years has been street artist Vermin Supreme, an old guy with a big beard and a boot on his head. While Supreme has never earned any Presidential nomination, the fact that a spoof candidate with mandates for mandatory toothbrushing and pony ownership is the face of the LP should be proof enough of how generally ineffectual the party really is.

Jo Jorgensen

Professor Jo Jorgensen ended up being the 2020 Presidential candidate for the Libertarian Party. Despite most of the 2020 Libertarian primary votes going for Jacob Hornberger of Virginia, the LP decided to select Jorgensen instead at the Libertarian National Convention in May. Hailing from South Carolina, Jorgensen is currently a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Clemson University.

Jorgensen twice before ran for public office as a Libertarian, first in 1992 for South Carolina’s US House of Representatives election (District 4) and again as the Libertarian running mate for Harry Browne in the 1996 Presidential election.

Jorgensen was the only candidate other than Donald Trump and Joe Biden to be on the 2020 ballot in all 50 states. Her Libertarian VP running mate was podcaster Spike Cohen, who campaigned with Vermin Supreme in the LP primaries. If Jorgensen gets the nod again in 2024, you can expect her to be featured on several Vegas Libertarian Party odds boards, but you might want to save your money for someone with at least a snowball's chance.

Green Party

The Green Party is a socialism-based political group that advocates for mostly unfettered governmental control. In other words, they are the counterpoint to the Libertarian movement. Their platform includes hardline Democrat talking points taken to the extreme, focusing on “social justice,” “peace,” and “eco-socialism,” whatever that means.

Jill Stein was the Green Party’s nominee for President in 2016, taking just over one percent of the popular vote. In 2020, Howie Hawkins of New York was the Green Party nominee, earning 0.3% of the vote. For 2024, it's simply too soon to tell which Green Party candidate will cost the American taxpayer millions of dollars in ballot ink.

Independent Parties

While independent parties are, for all intents and purposes, another way to say “third parties,” they can also represent candidates that have no party affiliation of any kind. The term, like the policies of the candidates under its umbrella, is fairly fluid.

For the 2020 election, three potential candidates were being touted as potential contenders, though none of them actually threw their hats into the ring. Right now, nobody has announced a bid for the 2024 presidency from any third party, though we should start hearing about these these LARPers sooner or later.

Note: Please take care not to confuse independent parties with the Independent Party, which is a distinct third-party in US politics.

Andrew Cuomo Icon

Andrew Cuomo

While the current New York governor is a Democrat, he's well on the way out politically, suffering a dramatic fall from his perch circa early 2020, when he was on national TV every night playing up his "amazing" coronavirus response.

While that amazing response amazingly led directly to the preventable deaths of thousands of senior citizens in NY, it's the allegations of serial sexual harassment that are actually torpedoing Cuomo's ratings. Still, the top online Vegas election betting sites have Andrew Cuomo odds posted on the Democratic side for 2024.

Mark Cuban

Mark Cuban, reality TV star and billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, is something of a maverick himself. In 2017, he said that if he ever ran for President, he’d do so as a Republican. However, with Trump likely being too big a mountain to climb for even a fellow billionaire, if Cuban enters the fray come 2024, he will probably do so as an independent or a member of a defined third party.

Justin Amash

Justin Amash

Justin Amash is a Republican turned Independent turned Libertarian, and he was among the most well-known “Never Trumpers” in Congress during Donald Trump's tenure as POTUS.

Most recently, Amash was a sitting congressman in the US House of Representatives (MI), though he "retired" from the post in 2021, having committed career suicide by vociferously opposing Trump at every turn. If Amash runs for President in 2024, he's too toxic to get the LP nod, so he'd be helming an independent party.

Other Potential 2024 Third-Party Candidates

“Notable” might be a stretch, but from all third-party candidates out there, the following list represents those with the best chances to have any kind of national presence in the run-up to the 2024 general election (and thus impact the overall Vegas election odds, however slightly).

These also-rans may not be featured at many (or any) sportsbooks, which was the case in 2020, but it’s still important for bettors to know who they are and how they might influence the 2024 Presidential election:

Rocky De La Fuente (FL) - Alliance Party
Brian T. Carroll (CA) - American Solidarity Party
Jerome Segal (MD) - Bread and Roses (LOL)
Don Blankenship (WV) - Constitution Party
Mark Charles (CA) - Legal Marijuana Now Party
Gloria La Riva (CA) - Party for Socialism and Liberation
Phil Collins (NV) - Prohibition Party (not very rock ‘n’ roll)
Rocky De La Fuente (FL) - Reform Party
Jeff Mackler (CA) - Socialist Action
Joseph Kishore (MI) - Socialist Equality Party
Howie Hawkins (NY) - Socialist Party USA
Alyson Kennedy (TX) - Socialist Workers Party
Johannon Ben Zion (AZ) - Transhumanist Party (aka Skynet)
Bill Hammons (CO) - Unity Party of America
Max Abramson (NH) - Veteran’s Party of America

2020 Presidential Election Third Party Results

In the 2020 Presidential election, Libertarian candidate Jo Jorgensen performed poorly compared to typical LP numbers in previous elections. She managed to take 1.2% of the vote, down from typical LP numbers average in the 3% range.

In a few swing states, Jorgensen seems to have played a significant spoiler role against the GOP, arguably siphoning off enough conservative votes to help boost Democrat Joe Biden to national victory. Meanwhile, Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins took 0.2% of the national vote and doesn't appear to have hurt the Democratic Party in the race.

3rd Party Candidate FAQs

What is a third-party candidate?

What is the difference between a third party and an independent party?

A third party is a defined political party that is not one of the two main parties, i.e. Republican or Democrat. An independent party is similarly a party that isn't one of those two main parties.

However, independent parties may not be organized. Any candidate with no party affiliation (NPA) is an independent, but not a member of a third party.

Thus, all third party candidates are independent party candidates, but not all independent candidates are third party candidates.

What is the Independent Party?

Where can I bet on 3rd party Presidential candidates for 2024?

Has a third-party candidate ever won the Presidential election?

Technically, yes.

And also, technically no.

George Washington, America’s first President, won both of his elections as an independent, but he held Federalist policies and was supported by the Federalist Party.

Thus, most historians consider Washington a Federalist, which was one of the major parties at the time and not a third party by modern standards. Also, given that America was brand-new, there wasn’t a great deal of standardization for what even constituted a mainstream party back then.

Otherwise, nobody has ever won the post of President as a 3rd party candidate.

Why do third-party candidates rarely win elections?

For better or for worse – and usually the latter – the US political system is effectively bifurcated into two political parties with common opposing beliefs.

There are subgroups within those parties, certainly, but this is simply the nature of the beast. It has two backs, and it’s not pretty.

So when a third-party candidate runs for President, he or she is running against a well-oiled machine. The best a third party or independent candidate can usually hope to do is throw a bit of a monkey wrench into the gears, but that’s it.

Still, after Trump won in 2016 and possibly in 2020 (depending on who and what you believe), anything is possible.

Should I vote for a third-party candidate?

What are the Vegas odds of a 3rd party candidate winning an election?

Should I bet on a third-party candidate?

It depends. The payouts, of course, can be very compelling.

However, third-party candidate betting – if you intend to actually win money – is better left to local or state races.

That said, you should certainly factor in a 3rd party candidate’s chances when making your political wagers, because the popularity of such a candidate can affect whether or not a mainstream politician – like Donald Trump or Kamala Harris, for example – actually wins in 2024.

Does the electoral college discourage third party candidates?

This is a much-debated question in political circles, and it depends on your perspective.

On one hand, the EC discourages Independents from running because the system favors the mainstream. Today, and for the last 100 years or so, that’s Democrats and Republicans.

That said, one can argue that the electoral college favors third-partiers because it allows them to play spoiler. No third party or independent candidate ever honestly thought they had a chance to win (with the possible exceptions of Teddy Roosevelt in 1912 and George Wallace in 1968), but they typically get on the ballot in a concerted effort to assist one of the two main parties by cannibalizing votes in key swing states.

For example, historically, it is acknowledged that Libertarian Party candidates help Democratic nominees, while Green Party candidates help Republican nominees.

For voters, this is a Catch-22.

For bettors, it's a useful piece of data to help them make informed election wagers.

How do 3rd parties affect elections?

Did third-party candidates cost Donald Trump the election in 2020?

It is sometimes estimated that third-party candidates cost Donald Trump the 2020 election. However, this is not borne out by the numbers.

The Green Party – which is the Independent party that traditionally takes votes away from Democratic candidates, got about 0.3% of the 2020 vote.

Meanwhile, the Libertarian ticket – which siphons votes from the GOP – got 1.2% of the popular vote. The argument can be made that the LP caused Trump to lose a few swing states, but not enough to change the outcome.

Alleged vote counting irregularities had a much bigger impact than third parties in 2020.

The only time a third party did unequivocally change the outcome of an election by flipping the winning party was in 1992, when Ross Perot – running as an independent – got 18.9% of the national vote, causing George Bush (37.5%) to lose reelection to Bill Clinton (43%).