In  addition to the Democrats and Republicans, there are four other ballot-qualified political parties in California, and over a dozen smaller  political bodies which are formally attempting to gain ballot access  ahead of the 2012 presidential election.  At least one of the latter is already well on its way.

According  to the most recent report on voter registration from the Secretary of  State’s office, there are currently over 17 million registered voters in  California. With 23.6 million eligible voters in the state, total voter  registration is just under 73%.  Among registered voters, 44% are  Democrats, 31% are Republicans, 20.4% have no party preference, and just  under 5% are registered with a third party.

Of  all third parties in the state, the American Independent Party has by  far the most registered voters, with 417,567.  In a distant second is  the Green Party, which has over 110,000 members. The Libertarians are  close behind the Greens, with over 92,000 registrants.  And, finally,  more than 58,000 California voters are registered with the Peace and  Freedom Party.  Interestingly,  there are more voters registered “other” than there are in the Green,  Libertarian or Peace and Freedom parties.  More than 121,000 Californians are  affiliated with a third party that is not officially recognized by the  state.

Over  a dozen political bodies have filed papers with the Secretary of State  formally declaring their intention to qualify for ballot access in time  for the 2012 presidential primary elections, scheduled for February 7th  of next year. Some are more well-known than others.  Among them are  the Reform Party and the Constitution Party, which already effectively  possess some level of name recognition and a national reach.  Others,  such as the Working Families Party and the Modern Whig Party, are  expanding into California from their already-existing regional bases in the  northeast and the south.

In May, Ballot Access News reported that the new political organization Americans Elect had already collected over 500,000 signatures in its ballot access  petition drive.

“This already sets a new record for the largest number  of signatures ever collected in one state to place a new party on the  ballot. The previous highs had been set by the American Independent  Party in Ohio in 1968, which collected 451,000 signatures; and the  Independent Progressive Party in California in 1947-1948, which  collected 464,000,” noted Richard Winger in the report.

To gain  ballot access by petition in California, parties must gather over  1,000,000 valid signatures – the exact number being equal to 10% of the  total vote in the previous gubernatorial election.  Alternately, a new  party can qualify if its total registration exceeds 1% of the previous  gubernatorial election.  Why  then would Americans Elect seek 1 million signatures rather than 100,000  members?  As the party’s national field director, Kellen Arno, explains  in an interview on the group’s website, Americans Elect is apparently  not interested in membership per se.

“One  of the core beliefs of Americans Elect is welcoming Americans from all  political parties and ideologies. Because we are not a traditional third  party or political part of any sort, we don’t want to ask people to  leave their parties. Instead, we believe that the more people who are  able to participate in Americans Elect, from as diverse backgrounds as  possible, ultimately makes our democracy and our country stronger,” says  Arno.

In  recent months, Americans Elect has quietly begun an ambitious campaign  to gain ballot access in all 50 states ahead of next year’s presidential  election.  The party has already submitted petitions in Nevada,  Arizona, Michigan, Alaska, and Florida, according to reports at Ballot  Access News.

However,  relatively little seems to be known about the group, and it has  received very little news coverage, despite the fact that it seems to have a significant amount of money at its disposal.

“Americans Elect, which  became a 501(c) 4 corporation in September, can be as secretive as it  wishes. As a 501(c) 4 it is not required to report who its contributors  are,” wrote Greg Lucas for Capitol Weekly back in April.

A Google News search for “Americans Elect,” returns  just three references to the organization and two of these are from  Ballot Access News.

Until  it was converted into a 501(c) 4, Americans Elect was registered as a  527 organization.  According to Open Secrets, there were two primary  contributors to that incarnation of the group: Peter Ackerman and Arno  Political Consultants.  Ackerman was previously active in the failed  Unity ‘08 effort to field a bipartisan presidential ticket in the 2008  election.

Though  Americans Elect is seeking ballot access in all 50 states as a  political party, it does not conceive itself as a party, at least in the  traditional sense.  Rather, it stresses how new technologies can  transform the political process in the United States.

“Americans Elect  will hold a secure vote in the first-ever online presidential nominating  convention. Every registered voter—Democrats, Republicans, and  independents—may be a Delegate and help nominate a presidential ticket  that bridges the vital center of our national politics,” says the group  on its “About” page.

Though  the group has received relatively little media attention to date, some  expect its campaign to kick into high gear over the summer.

“There is a  vacuum of traditional political news during the summer months . . .  This summer, I expect the big political drama to be the emergence of  Americans Elect,” writes Jim Cook at Irregular TImes.