American Freedom Party

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The American Freedom Party (AFP) is a far-right political group in the United States that advocates white nationalist ideas. It was founded on January 5, 2010, in Westminster, California, and was first called the American Third Position Party (A3P). The AFP grew out of earlier white-power groups, including the Golden State Party and the Freedom 14 skinhead group.

Ideology and stance: The AFP promotes American nationalism, strict anti-immigration policies, paleoconservatism, and white nationalism. It is widely described as a far-right and white supremacist movement.

Leadership and notable figures: The party’s chair was William Daniel Johnson, a Los Angeles attorney. One of the party’s directors has been Kevin B. MacDonald, a controversial academic whose writings have been criticized as promoting anti-Semitic ideas.

Ballot access and elections: The AFP tried to qualify for ballot access in California in 2009–2010 but did not succeed. It did achieve limited ballot presence in other elections, such as Harry Bertram’s 2011 bid for West Virginia governor (Bertram received about 1,111 votes, less than 0.4%). In 2012, Merlin Miller was named the party’s presidential hopeful with Virginia Abernethy as running mate. Kenn Gividen was nominated for president in 2015 with Bob Whitaker as vice president, but Gividen resigned after a few months, and Tom Bowie filled the VP slot. Whitaker resigned in 2016 in protest over the party’s direction and its stance toward Donald Trump.

Origins and incidents: The AFP traces its roots to the Freedom 14 white-power group and the Golden State Party, which briefly adopted that name before changing to American 3P and then American Freedom Party. In early 2012, members of Anonymous claimed to have hacked the party’s website and related accounts, and the front page was defaced with the message #OpBlitzkrieg, with some private information released.

Overview: The AFP is associated with white nationalist and extremist ideologies and has faced significant controversy and opposition for its views and activities.