What is the difference between a political party and an independent candidate?
A political party is an organized group of individuals that share a common set of political beliefs and that support candidates for political office who reflect those beliefs. Political parties typically have a platform or a set of policies that they advocate. They also typically have a network of leaders and workers who work to get their candidates elected. In Minnesota, the two major political parties are the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) and the Republican Party. These two parties dominate the political arena and are responsible for the majority of candidates running for office. An independent candidate, on the other hand, is someone who runs for office without any official affiliation with a political party. This means that they are not officially associated with a party’s platform or policies, although they may hold similar views. Independent candidates typically run alone and rely on their own resources and network to get their name out there. In some cases, independent candidates may align with one of the major political parties, but they are not required to. This structure allows them to be more flexible and responsive to issues that they may not feel are being adequately addressed by either major party. Overall, the main difference between a political party and an independent candidate is that the former has an official platform and affiliated network while the latter does not.
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