Allan Warren · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Third party · 1930–2019
Ross Perot
Henry Ross Perot was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Electronic Data Systems and Perot Systems. He ran an independent campaign in the 1992 U.S. presidential election and a third-party campaign in the 1996 U.S. presidential election as the nominee of the Reform Party, which was formed by grassroots supporters of Perot's 1992 campaign. Although he failed to carry a single state in either election, both campaigns were among the stronger presidential showings by a third party or independent candidate in U.S. history.
On the Ballot
Strongest counties, 1992
| County | third-party share | votes |
|---|---|---|
| Oneida, ID | 43.0% | 1,866 |
| Esmeralda, NV | 41.9% | 584 |
| Caribou, ID | 40.9% | 3,236 |
| Billings, ND | 40.7% | 678 |
| Duchesne, UT | 39.6% | 4,565 |
Weakest counties, 1992
| County | third-party share | votes |
|---|---|---|
| Wilcox, AL | 3.7% | 5,304 |
| Holmes, MS | 3.8% | 6,014 |
| Claiborne, MS | 4.0% | 4,412 |
| Starr, TX | 4.2% | 9,261 |
| Macon, AL | 4.3% | 8,762 |
County returns lump all third-party tickets together — these are the counties where the combined third-party vote ran strongest, a proxy for the 1992 insurgency.
Strongest counties, 1996
| County | third-party share | votes |
|---|---|---|
| Jefferson, IA | 30.5% | 7,397 |
| Mineral, MT | 25.3% | 1,615 |
| Mendocino, CA | 24.4% | 32,692 |
| Esmeralda, NV | 23.6% | 546 |
| Shoshone, ID | 23.3% | 5,954 |
Weakest counties, 1996
| County | third-party share | votes |
|---|---|---|
| Doniphan, KS | 1.4% | 3,054 |
| Wilcox, AL | 1.9% | 4,847 |
| Lowndes, AL | 1.9% | 5,441 |
| Greene, AL | 2.3% | 4,424 |
| Macon, AL | 2.4% | 8,203 |
County returns lump all third-party tickets together — these are the counties where the combined third-party vote ran strongest, a proxy for the 1996 insurgency.