Author: Jessica Gregory

Libertarian Presidential candidate Jo Jorgensen visited Madison Saturday evening talking with Wisconsinites on the Capitol lawn. She will appear on every state's ballot with her VP pick, Spike Conen. 

Jorgensen expresses her firm stance against a two party system on Twitter, encouraging Americans to think beyond the margins of Democrat and Republican. 

“For nearly 50-years Libertarians have been warning you that authoritarian, freedom-stealing policies would endanger America but few listened. Please do not believe voting DnR again will pull us back from the precipice they've brought us to,” Jorgenson tweeted.

The Libertarian and Green Parties rallied last June to appear at the debates, but the D.C. Circuit courts quickly denied the attempt. The Federal Election Commission has strict parameters third party candidates struggle to meet in order to make the television stage. For example, the FEC only invites candidates who averaged at least 15% of votes in five national opinion polls. Non-profit group Level the Playing Field has continually challenged this system, but courts maintain that selectivity is not an issue.

Almost thirty years ago, Independent candidate Ross Perot participated in the Presidential debates of 1992 against Bill Clinton (D) and George H. W. Bush (R). While it was Clinton who won the election, Perot secured 18.9% of the popular vote, the most in U.S. history for a third-party candidate.

Jorgensen stated she would like to take the stage debating Donald Trump and Joe Biden, reports Channel 3000. 

The only other third party candidate on the 2020 Presidential ballot is the Green Party's Howie Hawkins. Via Twitter, Hawkins voices that he too feels excluded from the debate and will instead be hosting a live stream following the debate at 10:00 p.m. CT. 

The first Presidential debate between Biden and Trump airs live tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. CT and will run for 90 minutes. Debate moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News has chosen six topics, each to be discussed for 15 minutes. This will be the first of three Presidential debates before the election on Nov. 3, 2020.