As the United States moves closer toward the general election in November and the two parties begin to finalize the process of confirming each other’s nominee, the two main nominees, while not having much in common politically, have the same problem when it comes to favorable/unfavorable numbers.

According to the latest polls available for front runner of the Democratic Party, Hillary Clinton (although Mrs. Clinton has been unable to clinch the amount of delegates needed) has a net negative among the American people when it comes to favorable/ unfavorable number, with 37.6% having a positive view of her and 55.8% having a negative view, equaling -18.2%.

The negative view of Mrs. Clinton could be attributed to many factors, including the many scandals that have plagued Mrs. Clinton since she announced her intentions to run for the Democrat nomination for President. Some of her troubles include an email scandal where Mrs. Clinton has been accused of using a private internet server for her emails instead of using a secure email server while she was Secretary of State. The case has been sent to the FBI and a decision of a possible indictment is expected before the Democrat convention in July (the convention is set to take place in Philadelphia from July 25^th to July 28^th.).

“The Number 1 reason that her favorability is so bad is that you have large numbers of Americans who say they don’t trust her” Democratic Strategist, Brad Bannon said of Mrs. Clinton unfavorable view by the American people.

Another incident which has been plaguing Mrs. Clinton is the terrorist attack in Benghazi Libya which happened on September 11^th 2012 where Ambassador Christopher Stephens was killed in an attack on the United States consulate along with two CIA men who responded to help. Mrs. Clinton has been accused of not doing enough to help provide security for the ambassador during the attack.

“They’re pretty bad” Mr. Bannon continued in his statement referring to the negative/ positive numbers.

On the Republican side, Republican nominee Donald Trump doesn’t fare much better when it comes to the same polls. With the latest polls available which were taken between May 6^th and May 23^rd Mr. Trump has a net negative of 22.6% where 58.0% view him as negative and only 35.4% view Mr. Trump as favorable.

Many factors have contributed to that number for Mr. Trump including the numerous personal attacks that he used during the primary process against fellow Republicans, along with verbal attacks against veterans and an instance where he mocked a disabled reporter.

“It’s like that story of two guys running from a bear” Mr. Bannon said of the contest of between Trump and Cruz (when the primary race was still in affect).  “One says we better run real fast and the other says I don’t have to run faster than the bear. I only have to run faster than you.”

Among the 18 Republicans who started off running, Mr. Trump was one of the only ones, who did not beat Mrs. Clinton in general election polls during the time of the primary; Governor John Kasich of Ohio had the best shot of beating Mrs. Clinton. Jeb Bush came in second while Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin came in third.

However, the polls have tightened in recent months and the race is viewed as competitive, with some polls even showing Mr. Trump beating Mrs. Clinton head to head.

All these negatives for both candidates have brought the possibility of a competitive third party, primarily coming from the Libertarian party, who nominated Gary Johnson Sunday the 29th as their candidate.

“At a minimum I think we’re in the presidential debates” former New Mexico Governor Johnson said at the Libertarian convention. Mr. Johnson is referring to a rule where candidates must get at least 15% of the vote in 5 national polls  to get onto the stage with the Democrat and Republican nominee in the presidential debate.

The Libertarian Party differentiates itself from both parties by going against the Democrats on issues such as taxes and government intervention in general, while going against the Republicans on issues such as immigration and border security.

“Someone doesn’t have to be disaffected with Mrs. Clinton to think that we have a good story” Bill Weld said, who is Mr. Johnson’s VP pick.

In an attempt to bring over people known as never Trump individuals Mr. Weld said “One doesn’t have to be never Trump to see that we were two of the most fiscally conservative governors in the U.S”. Never Trump voters range from loyal democrats who will vote for either Sanders or Clinton or, voters on the Republican side who were loyal Ted Cruz supporters and have publicly pledged that they were “never Trump” people.

Although the Libertarian Party may barely crack double digits at 10.0%- 15.0%, those votes may prove crucial if the vote is close.

“This is another voice at the table” Mr. Johnson continued in his victory speech.

In summary, it is good to have a third option to vote for instead of having just the two main parties but if the party knows that it has little chance to win, it should maybe think about developing success at the state level and then develop a strategy where it could be competitive at the National level and give the American people another option besides the two party system.

Links to sources:

1. CNN Link: https://www.cnn.com/2016/05/29/politics/libertarian-party-nominee-vote/
2. Donald Trump Unfavorable/ Favorable Poll: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/trump_favorableunfavorable-5493.html
3. Hillary Clinton Unfavorable/ Favorable Poll: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/clinton_favorableunfavorable-1131.html
4. Hillary Clinton Polls Number, The Hill Link: https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/276078-clintons-dismal-approval-ratings-prompt-dem-fears
5. Forbes Link: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnzogby/2016/03/27/trump-vs-clinton-mr-unfavorable-vs-mrs-unfavorable/#5dc8ddff66f1