Nader: Bloomberg, Other Billionaires May Run as Third-Party Candidate in 2016

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg or some other billionaire may well run for president as a third-party candidate in 2016, says Ralph Nader, a third-party candidate himself four times, most notably in 2000.

“There are some mega-billionaires who are seriously considering running third-party,” Nader told C-SPAN. “And the minute a mega-billionaire announces, like Ross Perot, they get enormous press, they get the polls, and they are in play.”

Bloomberg considered a bid last time around, Nader says.

“Mayor Bloomberg almost did it in 2012, and I think it is almost highly probable that, because there are so many mega-billionaires now, a lot of whom are in their 40s and 50s, they’ll say, ‘Look, we’ve had enough, we are going to go for a three- or four-party race,’” Nader said.

“And all they’ve gotta do is write a check for themselves. So when someone like Mr. Bloomberg’s worth $27 billion, to write a $500 million check and not have to dial for dollars . . . tends to be attractive to a lot of voters.”

The populace is ready to embrace a third-party candidate, Nader says. “But you have to convince them that the candidate has a chance to win. They’re not convinced the little third parties have that chance because of all the obstruction.”