Editing Ross Perot (section)

=== {{Anchor|1996_campaign}}1996 presidential campaign ===
{{Main|Ross Perot 1996 presidential campaign}}
[[File:Perot Choate 1996 campaign logo.svg|thumb|Flyer from Perot's 1996 presidential campaign]]
Perot tried to keep his movement alive through the mid-1990s, continuing to speak about the increasing national debt. He was a prominent campaigner against NAFTA, and frequently claimed that American manufacturing jobs would go to Mexico. On November 10, 1993, Perot debated with then-Vice President [[Al Gore]] on the issue on ''Larry King Live'' with an audience of 16 million viewers.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Tharoor|first=Ishaan|date=December 15, 2010|title=Al Gore and Ross Perot Debate NAFTA|language=en-US|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2010/12/16/top-10-larry-king-moments/slide/al-gore-and-ross-perot-debate-nafta/|access-date=July 9, 2021|issn=0040-781X}}</ref> Perot's behavior during the debate was a source of mirth thereafter, including his repeated pleas to "let me finish" in his southern drawl. The debate was seen by many as effectively ending Perot's political career.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/10/03/debate.games.tm/index.html|title=Bush plays off expectations; Gore learns from mistakes|access-date=August 14, 2008|last=Reaves|first=Jessica|author2=Frank Pelligrini|date=October 3, 2000|publisher=[[CNN|CNN#Online]]|quote=Gore's decisive victory was the saving of NAFTA and the beginning of the end of Perot as even a semi-serious public figure.|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915033715/http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/10/03/debate.games.tm/index.html|archive-date=September 15, 2008}}</ref> Support for NAFTA went from 34% to 57%.<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2010/12/16/top-10-larry-king-moments/slide/al-gore-and-ross-perot-debate-nafta/ |title=Al Gore and Ross Perot Debate NAFTA |last=Tharoor |first=Ishaan|date=December 15, 2010|magazine=Time}}</ref>

In 1995, he founded the [[Reform Party of the United States of America|Reform Party]] and won their presidential nomination for the [[1996 United States presidential election]]. His vice presidential running mate was [[Pat Choate]]. Because of the ballot access laws, he had to run as an independent on many state ballots. Perot received 8% of the popular vote in 1996, lower than in the 1992 race, but still an unusually successful third-party showing by U.S. standards. He spent much less of his own money in this race than he had four years prior, and he also allowed other people to contribute to his campaign, unlike his prior race. One common explanation for the decline was Perot's exclusion from the [[United States presidential debates|presidential debates]], based on the preferences of the Democratic and Republican party candidates. Law professor [[Jamie Raskin]] filed a lawsuit over Perot's exclusion years later.<ref name=od>{{Cite web|title=Open Debates: Board of Directors|url=http://www.opendebates.org/aboutus/boardofdirectors.html|publisher=Opendebates.org|access-date=November 13, 2012|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921053730/http://www.opendebates.org/aboutus/boardofdirectors.html|archive-date=September 21, 2013}}</ref><ref name=cbsdeb>{{Cite web|last=Richards|first=Paul J.|title=Do the debates unfairly shut out third parties?|date=October 15, 2012 |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/do-the-debates-unfairly-shut-out-third-parties/|publisher=CBS news|access-date=November 13, 2012|archive-date=November 18, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118042547/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57531685/do-the-debates-unfairly-shut-out-third-parties/|url-status=live}}</ref>