[wadetandy]

That doesn't work in a system like in the United States where we directly vote for a candidate who needs 50.1% of the vote. In most (all?) if the European countries where the pirate party has experienced success, 15% of the vote equals ~15% of the representation. In the US 15% gets you 0% representation.

[dragonwriter]

> That doesn't work in a system like in the United States where we directly vote for a candidate who needs 50.1% of the vote.

First, 50.1% (or 51% or 50% + 1, more common alternative descriptions) is an inaccurate description of the requirement in a majority/runoff election, "greater than 50%" is correct (since votes are always in whole numbers, 50% + 0.5 would also be a correct minimum threshold.)

Second, many single-winner elections in the US are plurality rather than majority/runoff, for which the threshold is actually "greater than any other candidate" not "greater than 50%".

Third, the system used for elections is subject to change (in many states, through citizen initiative, so the "but the incumbents will never vote for it" objection doesn't apply), so, "it doesn't work in the existing electoral system" isn't really a reason something won't work, just a reason why making it workable also involves advocating for change in the electoral system.

[wadetandy]

You know what I meant on the 50.1 thing, so I'm not going to get into that.

I'm not saying the system we have now is the best one or that it can't be changed. I was just responding to the parent's question of whether a small single issue party could gain traction in the US like the Pirate Party has in other places. Our current system makes that nearly impossible at the national level.