- Feb 5, 2002
- 166,520
- 56,190
- Country
- United States
- Faith
- Catholic
- Marital Status
- Married
- Politics
- US-Others
As the 2020 campaign hits an aggressive and overpowering fever pitch just weeks before the historic national election, many voters are displeased with their options.
Many Christian voters in particular feel uneasy with the current left-right spectrum in the U.S. as their values fail to fit neatly into either of the major parties.
In this valley of difficult decisions, third parties like the American Solidarity Party (ASP) are riding the wave of voter frustration, offering a proposed escape from the two-party system.
Polls show that despite the country’s increasingly tribal and binary political culture, voters are less than enthusiastic to actually cast their vote for President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden. While past iterations of the two political parties welcomed heterodoxy such as pro-life Democrats and Republicans against the death penalty, their modern platforms are far more dogmatic.
In a political climate where Christians often find it impossible to cast a vote without compromising at least a few of their religious convictions, the ASP hopes to convince them that they can be the answer.
Skylar Covich, the chair of the ASP, says that since the party’s founding in 2011, its seen steady growth from its original membership of under 20.
“People write to us that they feel much better about their vote because we are an option, because we have a candidate of high character who also agrees with them on most things,” Covich said.
The ASP finds its unique platform in Christian democracy, a philosophy that promotes active participation in elections in order to pass policies and social regulations in line with Christian ideas of morality.
“From conversations I had with the early members, there were some who wanted to keep our identity tied closer to Christian democracy; some primarily inspired by the sorts of Christian Democrats who brought European Catholics and Protestants together, while a few (ironically on the party’s left wing) wanted specific Catholic social teaching.”
The majority of the ASP is Catholic, but Protestants make up a significant and very active role in the organization. There are also a few Muslim, Jewish, atheist and agnostic members who find the policies of the ASP preferably despite disagreeing with the underlying philosophy and theology of Christian democratic thinking.
Continued below.
The Third Party Fishing For Dissatisfied Christians
Many Christian voters in particular feel uneasy with the current left-right spectrum in the U.S. as their values fail to fit neatly into either of the major parties.
In this valley of difficult decisions, third parties like the American Solidarity Party (ASP) are riding the wave of voter frustration, offering a proposed escape from the two-party system.
Polls show that despite the country’s increasingly tribal and binary political culture, voters are less than enthusiastic to actually cast their vote for President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden. While past iterations of the two political parties welcomed heterodoxy such as pro-life Democrats and Republicans against the death penalty, their modern platforms are far more dogmatic.
In a political climate where Christians often find it impossible to cast a vote without compromising at least a few of their religious convictions, the ASP hopes to convince them that they can be the answer.
Skylar Covich, the chair of the ASP, says that since the party’s founding in 2011, its seen steady growth from its original membership of under 20.
“People write to us that they feel much better about their vote because we are an option, because we have a candidate of high character who also agrees with them on most things,” Covich said.
The ASP finds its unique platform in Christian democracy, a philosophy that promotes active participation in elections in order to pass policies and social regulations in line with Christian ideas of morality.
“From conversations I had with the early members, there were some who wanted to keep our identity tied closer to Christian democracy; some primarily inspired by the sorts of Christian Democrats who brought European Catholics and Protestants together, while a few (ironically on the party’s left wing) wanted specific Catholic social teaching.”
The majority of the ASP is Catholic, but Protestants make up a significant and very active role in the organization. There are also a few Muslim, Jewish, atheist and agnostic members who find the policies of the ASP preferably despite disagreeing with the underlying philosophy and theology of Christian democratic thinking.
Continued below.
The Third Party Fishing For Dissatisfied Christians
