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The 1996 presidential campaign of
Ross Perot Henry Ross Perot ( ; June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Electronic Data Systems and Perot Systems. He ran an Independent politician ...
, an independent presidential candidate in
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
and the founder of the Reform Party, was announced on July 10, 1996. Perot said he would seek the Reform Party nomination for president of the United States in the 1996 election during an appearance on ''
Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' is an American television talk show broadcast by CNN from June 3, 1985 to December 16, 2010. Hosted by Larry King, it was the network's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Ma ...
''. After initially stating that he would not seek the nomination of the Reform Party, Perot reversed his decision and announced his campaign the day after former Colorado governor
Richard Lamm Richard Douglas Lamm (August 3, 1935 – July 29, 2021) was an American politician, writer, and attorney. He served three terms as the 38th Governor of Colorado as a Democrat (1975–1987) and ran for the Reform Party's nomination for Pre ...
announced his campaign. Perot easily won the nomination against Lamm in the mail-in primary and selected economist
Pat Choate Pat Choate (; born April 27, 1941) is an American economist who is most known for being the 1996 Reform Party candidate for Vice President of the United States, the running-mate of Ross Perot. Following the 1996 election, the Federal Election Co ...
as his vice presidential candidate. Unlike his previous campaign, which was self-financed, Perot's ability to finance his own campaign was limited to $50,000 after accepting $30 million in presidential public funds; he also suffered from single digit polling numbers after announcing his campaign. Despite Perot's earlier success in the 1992 campaign, he was unable to replicate it in 1996 and did not appear in either of the presidential debates due to new rules established by the Commission on Presidential Debates requiring candidates to poll at least 15% in five national polls. On Election Day (November 5), 1996, Perot took 8.40% of the popular vote and 0 electoral votes, a decrease of 10.51% from the previous election. However, it remains by far the most successful third party campaign run since Perot's first presidential campaign, with the Reform Party being the first and only third political party in United States history to secure federal matching funds by taking over 5% of the popular vote. The Reform Party received $12.5 million in matching funds in
2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
.


Background

In
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
Perot became the most successful third-party candidate since
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
in
1912 This year is notable for Sinking of the Titanic, the sinking of the ''Titanic'', which occurred on April 15. In Albania, this leap year runs with only 353 days as the country achieved switching from the Julian to Gregorian Calendar by skippin ...
with 18.91% of the popular vote as an independent and in six states was placed on the ballot on newly formed political parties. In the early nineties multiple independence parties under the leadership of
United We Stand America United We Stand America was the name selected by Texas businessman H. Ross Perot for his citizen action organization after his 1992 independent political campaign for President of the United States. Perot's 19% showing in the 1992 election was su ...
formed with ballot access due to Perot's success in 1992 and in 1995 joined to form the Reform Party. Following the 1992 campaign Perot continued campaigning against NAFTA and accepted an offer by Vice President
Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...
to debate the issue on ''Larry King Live'' on November 9, 1993. "Perot's behavior during the debate was a source of mirth thereafter, including his repeated pleas to 'let me finish' in his southern drawl. The debate was seen by many as effectively ending Perot's political career." Support for NAFTA went from 34% to 57%.


Announcement

Perot had initially stated that he would not seek the Reform nomination, but the
Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign ...
ruled that only Perot would be eligible for $32 million in federal matching funds as his 1992 candidacy was as an independent so anybody else nominated by the Reform Party would not be eligible for any matching funds and the Reform Party would struggle to raise funds without matching funds as Perot would only be allowed to donate at most $1,000. Another problem for any other Reform candidate would be the loss of ballot access in
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
due to Perot's name being placed onto the ballot as an independent by the Texas affiliate. On July 9, 1996, former Colorado governor Richard Lamm announced that he would seek the Reform Party's nomination. However, the next day on July 10, Perot announced on ''Larry King Live'' that he would seek the presidency again, like he had done in 1992, stating that, "If they feel I am the person they want to do this job, then certainly I will give them everything I have to get it done." Republican presidential candidate
Pat Buchanan Patrick Joseph Buchanan ( ; born November 2, 1938) is an American paleoconservative author, political commentator, and politician. He was an assistant and special consultant to U.S. presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan. He ...
stated that Perot "is a mortal threat to the Republican Party" and that the Reform Party, "threatens the viability of the Republican Party." Ironically, Buchanan himself would seek the presidency as the Reform Party nominee just four years later.


Campaign

In July, Perot asked Representative
Marcy Kaptur Marcia Carolyn Kaptur ( ; born June 17, 1946) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from Ohio's 9th congressional district. Currently in her 22nd term, she has been a member of Congress since 1983. A member of the Democr ...
to be his vice presidential running mate, but she declined the following month and chose to stay in Congress. In mid-August, Perot announced that he would be accepting $30 million in presidential public funds which would limit him to spend no more than $50,000 of his own money on his campaign. Perot won the nomination on August 17, 1996, and accepted it at the Reform Party convention the following day. Lamm stated that he was "not angry", but that he was unsure if he would vote for Perot. On September 10, Perot selected
Pat Choate Pat Choate (; born April 27, 1941) is an American economist who is most known for being the 1996 Reform Party candidate for Vice President of the United States, the running-mate of Ross Perot. Following the 1996 election, the Federal Election Co ...
, an economist with whom he had co-written a 1993 book opposing NAFTA, as his running mate. Perot was rejected from participating in the presidential debates, unlike in
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
, as the Commission on Presidential Debates determined he did not have a realistic chance to win. He received 8.4% of the
popular vote Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the tota ...
, and did not win any states.


Campaign finance


References

{{1996 United States presidential election Ross Perot 1996 United States presidential campaigns Reform Party of the United States of America presidential campaigns Centrism in the United States