Started in 1998 in Utah, the Independent American Party gained support from tens of thousands of voters nationwide in its infancy but lost support and its footing on ballots after struggling to establish leadership, Kelly Gneiting said, the party’s national chairman.

“Our party doesn’t compromise,” he said. “We just want to get out there and tell the truth.”

The party’s membership committee coordinator, Pro-Life, said he legally changed his name to Pro-Life in 2006 to show support for his beliefs as an unaffiliated political office seeker in Idaho. However, he and the Independent American Party are looking to gain recognition nationwide.

Pro-Life said the candidates must be carefully selected in order to accurately represent the meaning of the party.

“We don’t want self-serving candidates,” he said.

The party has a link to a conservative Christian foundation, Gneiting said, adding that he hopes those who learn about the party understand the connection between politics and religion.

“We have to do things the Lord’s way,” he said. “Politics are right with religious freedom. It’s not hate that drives us, but love.”