No Labels recognized as a political party in South Dakota

A national organization that might field a third-party candidate for president has been recognized as a political party in South Dakota.

Monae Johnson, South Dakota’s secretary of state, announced Friday that No Labels has filed the required number of petition signatures to establish itself as a party in the state. No Labels now has 30 days to adopt a constitution or bylaws governing its organization and conduct.

Johnson said the organization needed 3,502 petition signatures and turned in approximately 8,000. She said the party does not yet have any registered voters in the state. Democrats, Libertarians and Republicans are the other recognized parties in South Dakota.

No Labels recently enlisted former Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon to direct its effort to qualify for ballots in all 50 states next year.

The organization was founded in 2009 by former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, a one-time Democrat from Connecticut who ended his political career as an independent. The group has advocated for bipartisan solutions, and prior to the current effort has not tried to nominate candidates for any office.

By the end of July, No Labels had qualified for the ballot in five states, the organization said in a news release.

“By early 2024,” the news release said, “No Labels will gauge the mood of the American public and their openness to an independent Unity ticket and will offer our ballot line to a ticket if and only if such a ticket has a viable path to victory in the 2024 presidential election.”