Briefly outline some of the difficulties third parties in the U.S face when trying to secure electoral campaign funding.

Third parties in the U.S face a number of difficulties when competing against the two dominant parties, those of the Republican party and the Democratic party. 

There are two important factors to consider. The first of these is lack of funding. Third parties have traditionally found it very difficult to secure funding, vital for an effective electoral campaign. This is partly due to the fact they rarely achieve the threshold (5% of the popular vote at the previous election) needed to secure government funding for the following year. Another important reason is the relationship American politics has with big business. Large corporations, and wealthy businessmen want to back the winner, and as this has, for such a long time, been one of the two main parties, third parties find it very difficult to attract big donations. This all has a reinforcing effect. As the dominance of the two main parties continues, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, and third parties find it increasingly difficult to secure funding.