If the 39% of Americans reported to have been watching national politics “very closely” in the past few years, it should be no surprise that many, if not all, should have picked up on the fact that we are more politically polarized than ever before. That little “D” or “R” next to your name means a lot to many people, which is one of the main sources of this issue.

This is often due to the radicalization of both sides in the two-party system, with the radical part of each being both the minority and the loudest at the same time, which makes it so that the radical parts of these parties are often seen as representing the greater party as a whole. So, if the radicalization of the two-party system is the issue, then extra third-parties should be the answer, right?

Not so fast. More than one extra political party in order to attempt to solve political radicalization may seem like a good idea at first, but may lead to an issue such as the one that Israel’s legislature is currently dealing with, having over 30 different political parties which leads to gridlock.

No, the answer would be one extra political party: a centrist party to cut through the radicalization of both the democrats and the republicans. This is something that parties such as the Libertarians, the Green Party and the Tea Party have tried to do for decades now, but have been unsuccessful in doing so for a couple of reasons, first of which being that there are simply too many to choose from, and they aren’t specific on their goals for their parties as a whole.

Joe Biden is a perfect example of why a moderate, centrist party would be perfect for the U.S. Many are arguing that Biden is a “neo-liberal” and a “socialist”, but many of his past political positions say otherwise. In 1974, then Delaware-senator Joe Biden stated that the Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade, which stated that it was constitutional for a woman to seek out an abortion, “went too far”.

Since then, many of Biden’s policies and statements have been seen as more centrist than anything else. And yet, he was chosen as Obama’s running mate in 2008, won 2 terms there, and finally, in 2020, won the seat of president. If Biden could win the Presidential election with more votes than any other in history with his centrist background, couldn’t he be able to win on a centrist ticket?

One large issue for third parties is federal funding for their political campaigns. Democrats and Republicans have large political action committees, called PACs, and other sources of federal funding that fund their campaigns, while third parties often don’t reach the amount of attention needed to gain this funding. However, if a major politician such as Joe Biden ran under a new Centrist Party ticket, this could bring about the popularity and votes needed to at least gain their party funding, or even thrust them into the spotlight with the giants of the Republicans and Democrats.

With most Americans seeing themselves as moderates, they feel underrepresented or unheard by those who don’t share their views, as they are clumped into the more radical parts of their parties. But, given a third centrist party, this could attempt to solve this issue once and for all.