I predicted back in November that No Labels would fizzle, but it's remarkable to see the lack of interest. Despite widespread media coverage and a December launch event that drew numerous high-profile politicians, the group has only managed to attract 18,697 signatures for its No Labels Declaration ("We are not labels – we are people"). It's the same tepid response we saw to Unity '08 (124,000 members in twenty months) and Draft Bloomberg (11,600 signatures in six weeks) during the 2006-2008 period.
To put these results in perspective, here's how the No Labels, Unity '08, and Draft Bloomberg efforts compare to a petition asking the videogame company Blizzard Entertainment to include a LAN option in Starcraft 2, which reached 250,000 signatures in a little over a year*:
As you can see, No Labels is barely outpacing Draft Bloomberg, though it is doing better than Unity '08. All three, however, are dwarfed by the Starcraft 2 petition, which just underscores a point I've made many times before -- despite all the media hype, these groups have little popular support and almost no chance of changing the system.
* I constructed these lines using time-stamped blog posts by myself and others noting the number of signatures on each petition.
This is really inspired, Brendan. Starcraft 2! Love it.
Posted by: Eric McGhee | February 03, 2011 at 12:42 PM
In fall of 1968, I attended a talk given by a political pollster named Sindlinger in Philadelphia. At the time, Nixon was leading McGovern by a huge margin. Sinlinger told us that McGovern still had a chance to win if he simply promised to give every group whatever they wanted. He told us, "The American voter is a selfish pig."
I think Sindlinger's aphorism may explain why No Labels has gone nowhere. We might prefer nicer communication, but our primary (selfish) goal would be something like higher government benefits, lower taxes, etc.
Posted by: David in Cal | February 03, 2011 at 02:11 PM
No Labels launched in December.. .we are just beginning to build the movement. What I don't understand , Mr. Nyhan, is why you seem to want No Labels to fail. No Labels stands for our politician s putting country before party. To treat the "other side" with respect instead of demonizing them. This should be traits we should celebrate and push forth, not to poke fun at. If we are to move forward as a country, it must be done together. The majority of Americans want our leaders to compromise and to end negative campaignin g. Our movement will take hold...you can either be part of the solution or continue to be part of the problem. I hope the former.
Posted by: Justin Bourret | February 03, 2011 at 04:41 PM
Also to compare political movements to a videogame? That makes no sense and only hurts your argument.
Posted by: Justin Bourret | February 03, 2011 at 04:44 PM