The Reform Party has been on the wane in recent years, with state parties slowly disappearing. However, this article highlights the efforts of some activists to revive the Reform Party of Utah.
“When Ross Perot ran in 1992, there were two states that he came in second in the polls,” said state party organizer Jaime Dives. “One of those states was Maine and the other state was Utah.”
Dives is circulating petitions to get the Reform Party on the Utah ballot for the 2012 election cycle. She needs 2,000 signatures from registered voters by Feb. 15.
“We’re looking for people who want to sign up to be reform party members or people who want to be active in the party,” said Dives. “That will allow us to run our candidate on the election ballot in Utah. It will also give people the opportunity to register to vote as a reform party member.”
Despite Utahns voting primarily Republican, Dives said most Utah registered voters aren’t registered with a political party. “If you go to the lieutenant governor’s office and ask for the roll, you’ll see that there are more unaffiliated registered voters than there are Republicans and Democrats combined,” Dives said.
She believes this group is ready for an alternative to the perceived two-party system in America.
Collison says later in the article that although the Reform Party is in a rebuilding phase and aiming for fifty state ballots, she does not believe they can accomplish that in 2012.