Forum Post: Nov. 7, 2012 News: How OWS Won the White House

Washington, D.C. - For a movement that didn't exist eighteen months ago, OWS has come a long way. It's worth taking a look back now at how they achieved the first third-party presidential victory in American history.

The first thing they recognized is that they were not a branch of the Democratic Party; they truly did represent the middle of the electorate that was disgusted with Congress, the two-party political system, and the shortcomings of the false prophet of big-C change, Barack Obama.

Of course the next important thing that they did was to decide early on to form a political party and register it in every state, rather than just allowing the movement to fizzle in those first cold months of last winter, a few months after the movements' birth. And thanks to an injection of marketing genius, that political party ended up with a proper name for a political party. OWS suited the original organization perfectly, but when it was time to start a political party they had the sense to choose a name even catchier than the Tea Party.

The next key was uniting the allies. Labor unions and a majority of former Democrats were no-brainers; the coup was recruiting almost a third of former Republicans as well.

An unrelenting focus on the issues cannot be overstated in their success. Given the way the movement started, it's hardly surprising that the party leaders were able to maintain an unprecedented level of communication with the rank and file, making the once-lauded Obama '08 "Internet Campaign" seem like a warm-up act in comparison, which in retrospect, perhaps it was.

The new party's promise to keep the rank and file (as well as the rest of the electorate) engaged include a number of down-to-earth direct democracy initiatives, especially the vote-by-cell phone initiative which they have pledged to make their first priority once they take power in January. Rather than have all the energy that currently exists on the ground and on the Internet dissipate after the election, the energy will actually increase once people see their votes being counted regularly and on a wide variety of issues, rather than just every four years. Democracy at the speed of a horse made since in 1776; democracy at the speed of a phone call makes sense now.

Although winning the presidency is a historical achievement, I would argue that the most profound victory here is actually the gains that were made in the House and the Senate. These show that this new party is here to stay, and that the long overdue smashing of the Democrat/Republican status quo will be lasting and not just a one-off exception to the duopoly rule. Though they are far from a majority in the Senate, the sitting Senators from the now-minority Democrats and Republicans can see the writing on the wall: either they form coalitions with the newly ascendant party, or their time in office will be short-lived.

Let's just hope that the president-elect keeps her promise to enact the "Capitalism 3.0"-inspired measures to limit the power of corporations and simultaneously protect the commons, or before one election cycle is over we'll find ourselves right back where we were, with the Fortune 500 holding the puppet strings of all government officials, regardless of party affiliation.