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== History ==
The political reform movement was founded as a [[non-profit organization]] by several political figures: Democrats [[Hamilton Jordan]], [[Gerald Rafshoon]], and Republican consultants [[Doug Bailey]] and Jim Jonas and the former two-term [[Independent (politician)|independent]] [[Maine]] [[Governor]] [[Angus King]].<ref name="VandeHei" /> Unity08 attempted to leverage online technology, such as secure voting, to allow American voters to determine the most crucial issues facing the country, discuss them with potential nominees, and participate in an online convention to nominate a bipartisan presidential ticket. In an interview that aired on ''[[The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer]]'' in May 2006, Unity08's founders said that the group was formed in response to the polarization between the Republican and Democratic political parties. The group also cited a poll it commissioned from Princeton Survey Research and claimed that 82 percent of Americans think that the two major political parties are unable to address the country's problems and that 73 percent of Americans are in favor of alternatives to the two parties.<ref name="newshour">{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june06/unity_05-31.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615223539/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june06/unity_05-31.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 15, 2006 |title=Online NewsHour: Unity Party Eyes 2008 election |website=[[PBS]] |access-date=2006-10-20}}</ref>
The group's status as a [[non-profit]] organization came into question when they asked the [[Federal Election Commission]] whether the group could defer registering as a [[political action committee]] until after its candidates for the 2008 presidential election were named. A draft released by the commission in July 2006 concluded that "Unity08 must register as a policy committee and therefore is subject to the reporting requirements and limitations and prohibitions."<ref name="CLC">{{cite web |url=http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/press-2118.html |title=Roll Call: FEC Counsel Skeptical of Unity08 Request |last=Ackley |first=Kate |date=2006-07-16 |publisher=Campaign Legal Center |access-date=2006-10-20 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070207030250/http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/press-2118.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 2007-02-07}}</ref> In October 2006, the commission voted on the matter and declared that the group must register as a political action committee.
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