Socialist Party USA
The Socialist Party of the United States of America (SPUSA) is one of the heirs to the Socialist Party of America of Eugene V. Debs and Norman Thomas. It is a Democratic Socialist party, advocating "revolution by the ballot box" instead of a military revolution.It was formed in 1973 after the Socialist Party of America was taken over by right-Shachtmanites and renamed the Social Democrats USA.
The Socialist Party USA has focused mostly on grassroots and local politics, although it has also put forward presidential candidates who have been largely ignored. A separate group, the Democratic Socialists of America, also split off in 1973 and is also active in political causes.
In 1980, the SPUSA became the first party to nominate a gay man for President--pacifist David McReynolds. He would run for a second time in 2000. In the past few years, the SP has grown from 600 members to nearly 1,500. And Socialists have surprised many in a number of recently elections, most notably in Milwaukee, where Socialist Wendell Harris received 20% of the vote for mayor.
Nevertheless, the collapse of most communist countries in 1990-1991 has undermined socialism in the U.S., as many Americans barely differentiate between the two political systems.
