Third-party candidates maintain low profile campaigns

While the Democrats and Republicans battle each other for control of Congress, third-party candidates across the nation are running scaled-down campaigns to increase their profile in what some call an exclusionary two-party system.\nIndiana's 8th district is no exception, as Libertarian and Green Party candidates vie for a piece of the electoral pie in Southwestern Indiana. Libertarian Thomas Tindle and Green write-in candidate Marc Haggerty are running campaigns based largely on the hope of voter frustration with the traditional political parties. \n"I guarantee we'll get more votes per dollar than the other candidates," Tindle said. "We don't have the same financial base, we can't rely on signs and a lot of TV ads. We're doing a lot of candidate's nights, answering surveys and so on. We're really relying on the free press."\nAccording to Federal Election Commission reports for the third fiscal quarter, Tindle has raised $230 and spent exactly half that. Even the Libertarian candidate for president, Harry Browne, has spent only $1.5 million in his national campaign.\nLike all Libertarians, Tindle is running on an anti-big government platform. He is against the expansion of Interstate 69 from Evansville to Indianapolis because it would divert Indiana dollars to Washington. He defends the Second Amendment and is against any federal gun legislation, calling current laws "useless." He is also against a Patient's Bill of Rights and a Medicare prescription drug plan because it increases federal interaction with the private health care industry. \nTindle also said he will work not to ignore Bloomington and the rest of the Bloody Eighth's northern border as he said many other candidates have done.\n"I did attend IU briefly, and I feel a connection to the (Bloomington) community," he said. "I do intend to listen to voters around Bloomington and address their concerns." \nIf Tindle is running an intentionally low-key campaign, Haggerty is making his push for Congress a purely grassroots, word-of-mouth effort. Because he is not on the ballot, Haggerty is not required by law to file campaign finance disclosures with the FEC. But he said his campaign strategy has been simple: talk as much as possible to as many people as possible. \n"I've been speaking in dorms, any dorm that will have me," he said. "I've attended any meeting with a Green Party angle, like I-69 or sweatshops. We've reached hundreds of people so far."\nHaggerty's platform includes many environmental issues, including ceasing logging in the Hoosier National Forest, limiting dependence on internal combustion engines and PCB contamination. He also said the Lake Monroe water quality is of paramount concern to local residents.\n"How many outboard motors are we going to allow in our drinking water?" he said. "What about septic tanks?"\nHaggerty has been more openly critical of the race than his third-party counterpart. He was denied entry to the congressional debates because he is not on the ballot and said his fellow candidates are "acting like little kids" in the election. He even declined to have a picture taken for this article because he said he didn't want the campaign to elevate him into "celebrity" status. \n"I'm only campaigning for the last month because I work, and I can't afford to take time off," he said. "I need to support myself just like everyone else"