William McGaughey's campaign for U.S. Senate in the 2002 Independence Party primary was based on the premise that, as the Republican party of the 1850s achieved majority status by embracing the issue of anti-slavery, so third parties in our day need to find one or two issues of transcending political importance and take them to the voters without concealment or compromise.

What are those "one or two issues"? McGaughey's approach to that question was to define the core values of the existing Democratic and Republican parties and then take the opposite position. He deliberately staked his position outside the political mainstream. He picked issues that were obnoxious to the current establishment.

Anathema to the Republicans, the party of big business, was his call for federal legislation to achieve a 32-hour workweek by the year 2010.

Anathema to the Democrats, the party of demographic special interests and political correctness, was his call to support "the full citizenship, dignity, and equality of white males."

With this improbable platform, McGaughey placed second to Jim Moore in Minnesota's Independence Party primary for U.S. Senate held on September 10, 2002. He received 8,482 votes or 31% of the total, compared with 49.5% for Moore and 19.5% for a third contender, Ronald E. Wills, both excellent candidates.

McGaughey's relatively strong showing came despite: (1) lack of party endorsement (which went to Moore), (2) the campaign's brevity (last-minute filing, one month's active campaigning) and scarcity of money ($1,000 to $2,000 spent), and (3) refusal of the state's largest newspaper, the Star Tribune, to mention McGaughey in its coverage of the primary election or accept a paid ad from his campaign so long as the ad referred to "dignity for white males."

McGaughey does not claim to be a skilled campaigner. His campaign was significant in its choice of message. Clearly there is a broad constituency of independent voters in Minnesota, and perhaps elsewhere, which is fed up with the Democrats and Republicans and will support an agenda of sweeping change.

His prescription for a third party aspiring to majority status is:

(1) Get a clear message before the public showing how you differ from the Republicans and the Democrats.

(2) Do not be subtle. Do not try to make your agenda seem better than it actually is or conceal any of its aims. Push this agenda boldly and energetically.

(3) Market-test this product in an election. If the product tests well, run with it. If not, change the message until it resonates with the voters.

William McGaughey has done this on a small scale. His book offers a blueprint for how the same principles might be applied more broadly to change the political landscape, not only in Minnesota but across the nation.

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