Prior to the CPD, presidential debates were overseen by the League of Women Voters, a non-partisan group. However, in 1987, the group withdrew after the establishment parties insisted on certain demands for the debates which the LWV felt would be "hoodwinking of the American public." After that, the two main parties took control through the CPD, which has since acted to restrict debate participation to the Republican and Democrat candidates. The sole time a third party candidate has ever been able to overcome the CPD's roadblocks was 1992 when Ross Perot debated. The federal government ought to be doing something to keep the debates and thus our electoral process fair, but what? What does the federal government plan to do to ensure third party candidates get a fair shot at debating?
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