Fusion Party is a name for multiple political parties in

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

history and more recently a Federal political party established in Australia. The different parties that used the name don't share any particular political positions; instead, confederations of people from disparate political backgrounds united around a common cause individual to their situation—often opposition to a common enemy—and used the name Fusion Party to reflect the aggregate nature of their new party.

City Fusion Party in New York City

The City Fusion Party in New York City was the vehicle that Republican

Fiorello La Guardia Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (; born Fiorello Enrico LaGuardia, ; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the House of Representatives and served as the 99th Mayor of New York City fr ...

used to defeat the Democrats of Tammany Hall and be elected mayor of New York in 1933, and reelected in 1937 and 1941. It formed part of the New Deal coalition and worked closely with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who provided the federal patronage.

Fusion Party in Ohio and Indiana

The Fusion Party was the original name of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

in the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. In 1854, anti-slavery parties were forming in many northern states in opposition to the

Kansas Nebraska Act Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the we ...

of 1854. While many of these state parties adopted the name "Republican", the Ohio convention adopted the name "Fusionist" or "Fusion Party", which they felt more accurately described the fusion of persons from a variety of political backgrounds, including members of the

Free Soil Party The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery int ...

, the Conscience Whig Party, and the

Know-Nothing Party The Know Nothing party was a nativist political party and movement in the United States in the mid-1850s. The party was officially known as the "Native American Party" prior to 1855 and thereafter, it was simply known as the "American Party". ...

along with members of the Democratic Party who were opposed to slavery. Similarly, in Indiana, the Know-Nothings were not strong enough to run candidates on their own, and so combined with Republicans and other interest groups to run candidates on the Fusion or People's Party tickets in opposition to the

Anti-Nebraska movement The Anti-Nebraska movement was a political alignment in the United States formed in opposition to the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 and to its repeal of the Missouri Compromise provision forbidding slavery in U.S. territories north of latitude 36° ...

Fusion Party in South Dakota

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large po ...

, the Fusion Party was a short-lived

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

that existed in the late 19th and early 20th century. The party was formed in 1896 from an alliance of Democrats, Free Silver Republicans, and

Populists Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

who were opposed to the platform of the state

. A total of 56 Fusion Party representatives were elected to the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

during its brief existence. In addition,

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Richard F. Pettigrew, who served from 1889–1901, was the Fusion Party candidate for Senate in 1900, having left the Republican Party to join the Silver Republicans in 1896. South Dakota Governor

Andrew E. Lee Andrew Ericson Lee (March 18, 1847 – March 19, 1934) was an American politician who served as the List of Governors of South Dakota, third Governor of South Dakota. Biography Lee was born near Bergen, Norway, Bergen in Norway and at a young ag ...

was also an elected to his second term as a Fusionist.

Fusion Party in Nevada

In the very early 20th century, a coalition of

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

Democrats and

Silverites The Silverites were members of a political movement in the United States in the late-19th century that advocated that silver should continue to be a monetary standard along with gold, as authorized under the Coinage Act of 1792. The Silverit ...

called themselves the Fusion Party upon the insistence of Francis G. Newlands, who wanted to emphasize the need for fusion between the two groups if he wanted to hope for victory in the 1902 election. Fusion clubs were established in a number of counties throughout Nevada, and, despite a few temporary setbacks, a successful fusion of the two parties in the state did occur, and Newlands was elected Senator.

Fusion Party in Australia

Established in January 2022, the Fusion Party is an amalgamation of five political parties. The Climate Change Justice Party,

Pirate Party Pirate Party is a label adopted by political parties around the world. Pirate parties support civil rights, direct democracy (including e-democracy) or alternatively participation in government, reform of copyright and patent law, free shari ...

, Science Party,

Secular Party of Australia The Secular Party of Australia is a minor Australian political party, founded in January 2006 and registered as a federal political party in 2010.

, and Vote Planet. The merger was initiated by a change in the Australian Electrical Commission legislative change{{Cite web, last=corporateName=Australian Electoral Commission; address=10 Mort Street, first=Canberra ACT 2600; contact=13 23 26, title=FAQs: Party Registration – recent changes to the Electoral Act, url=https://www.aec.gov.au/FAQs/party-reg-changes.htm, access-date=2022-02-05, website=Australian Electoral Commission, language=en-AU to require a minimum of 1500 active members. Concerned that each of the five parties would not be able to meet the minimum criteria, they joined together under the Fusion Party.

References

External links

Fusion Party
Ohio History Central

by Steve Cobble and Sarah Siskind Political parties established in 1896 Defunct political parties in the United States Political history of the United States