The Independence Party, New York State's affiliate of the National Reform Party, has been embroiled in a power struggle over the past year which reaches into Mineola, where Nassau County Chairwoman Beth Anderson continues to fight claims she is not rightfully in charge.

When Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura announced he was leaving the National Reform Party and potential presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would not run on that line, most of America assumed the third party started by H. Ross Perot had been run into the ground.

"Ventura pulling out was something the major media made a big deal about, but no one really knows the extent of the infighting that has been going on and how close it hits home," Anderson told the Mineola American.

At issue is control over candidate nominations. Cross endorsement of major party candidates by the Independence Party have made the difference in several elections, to the point where it now occupies the third slot on the state ballot. Members of the party vote for delegates, who in turn vote on the party's leadership. The state chair and executive committee then have the power to appoint county chairs and, in turn, control endorsements.

State Independence Party Chairman Jack R. Essenberg, Anderson, and other county party leaders have been spending most of their time of late trying to convince people they are still in charge. An attempted coup by Frank McKay, once partners with Essenberg in the Suffolk County chapter, and Lenora Fulani, a formerly outspoken militant Marxist who has tried over the years to recast herself with political legitimacy, has split the party in two. At the state convention held on Long Island last spring, Fulani and her supporters laid claim power without the benefit of delegate votes, leaving Essenberg to remark, "I'm watching a Marxist takeover and we don't have the means to stop it." The McKay-Fulani camp named Jim Kapsis, of Albertson, as Nassau County chairman.

"Like every other party, we hold a convention every year, and that's when legitimately we can choose new leadership," Anderson said. "What they have effectively done is undermined the existing authorities and made it difficult for me to concentrate on the issues of Nassau County. I have to keep saying, 'I'm the chair; what's going on here?'"

Skip ahead to Feb. 12, 2000, when at the National Reform Party Convention in Nashville, TN, the New York delegation as headed by Essenberg was formally recognized by the credentials committee as the proper representatives of the Independence Party in this state. After nearly a year of fighting against the insurgence, Anderson says the ruling helps, but that the party is not yet out of the dark.

"The National Reform Party ruling was the first thing we can hang our hat on and say there is an authoritative body saying we are legitimately in power," Anderson said. "What it comes down to is who has the power to cross endorse candidates."

That power was displayed by the outcome of last November's elections for Nassau County Legislature. Anton Newspapers published a piece in which Anderson justified each of the Independence Party's endorsements. Sixteen out of 19 candidates endorsed by the party were elected.

These endorsements are all a third party has at its disposal in order to get its issues across. The Independence Party's platform of campaign finance reform, fiscal responsibility, voter choice and greater access for minor candidates has attracted the attention of independent (with a small 'i') voters throughout the state. It has also attracted major-party candidates who could use every edge they can get.

The problem has been that candidates for office have been confused about who to woo ¬ Essenberg or McKay-Fulani. With the national party's vote of confidence, and with the state Court of Appeals' decision that Essenberg and his appointees are rightfully in charge, Anderson hopes to get back to the business of screening candidates.

Now that Trump is out of the picture, Anderson weighed in on the presidential election, saying the National Reform Party is now leaning towards Pat Buchanan, so long as Fulani is not chosen as his running mate, which was once expected. Those familiar with the right-winged pundit's reputation may find this startling. However, Anderson said it is in keeping with the party's relatively narrow scope of interests.

"There is a feeling that John McCain is our guy, but he has not been willing to take our line until after he has the Republican nomination," Anderson said. "Buchanan is more aligned with our platform with regards to trade issues and campaign finance reform. Some of his personal issues we find difficult, but as far as trade and what to do with the surplus, health care, education, he's right for us."