Every candidate who runs under our banner agrees to these principles. No exceptions.
Most political parties demand loyalty to the party above all else. Fall in line. Vote as you're told. Protect the brand. That's how we got where we are—elected officials who answer to party leadership instead of the people who elected them.
The Common Sense Party does it differently. We don't want yes men and yes women. We want independent thinkers who happen to share a set of core principles about how government should work. Our oath isn't about controlling our candidates—it's about making sure they answer to you, not us.
The asks are minimal. The rest is up to their own judgment, their own conscience, and the needs of their own constituents. That's exactly how representative government is supposed to work.
As a candidate of the Common Sense Party, I pledge the following to the people I seek to represent:
I will not put the party first. My loyalty belongs to my constituents and my conscience. I will vote based on what I believe is truly best for the people I represent, even when it conflicts with the party's position. The Common Sense Party exists to serve the people—not the other way around.
I will think independently. I will not be a yes man or a yes woman. I will study the issues, seek out the best available evidence, and form my own conclusions. When I don't know enough about a subject, I will have the humility to learn before I legislate.
I will not be owned by special interests. I welcome data, expertise, and additional perspectives from any organization or group—but no special interest will dictate my vote. I will give equal time and honest consideration to both sides of any major issue, and I will look for common sense middle ground rather than defaulting to an absolute position on either side.
I will treat every tax dollar like it's my own money. Every budget line, every appropriation, every spending bill—I will ask myself whether I would spend my own money this way. If the answer is no, I will fight to cut it. The American taxpayer deserves the same respect with their money that I would demand with mine.
I will work across party lines to get things done. I will actively seek to collaborate with members of other parties to craft the best possible solutions—solutions that can actually pass and actually fix problems. Governing isn't about winning arguments. It's about solving problems for the people who sent me there.
This oath is intentionally short. We're not handing our candidates a script or a list of approved positions on every issue. We trust them to be the thoughtful, principled, independent leaders that the American people are starving for.
A Common Sense Party candidate in rural Missouri might vote differently than one in suburban Pennsylvania on certain issues—and that's not just okay, it's the point. They represent different people with different needs. What unites them isn't a rigid ideology. It's a shared commitment to honest governance, fiscal responsibility, independent thinking, and putting people over party.
If a candidate can't agree to these five principles, they're not our candidate. If they can, the rest is between them, their conscience, and their constituents. That's how a democracy is supposed to work.
"One man with courage is a majority."