Four years ago, Texas billionaire Ross Perot and his United We Stand, America party swept onto the political scene, managing to swing 19 percent of the vote.
This year, Perot and his Reform party are back, but their message is less brilliant than it was in the '92 campaign.
However, the Reformers are still fighting to participate in the mainstream campaign. Last month, Perot bought pricey television air time for his town meetings when he was banned from participating in the presidential debates.
Reform party officials question the motivation of the bipartisan commission for presidential debates for keeping Perot and his running mate, economics expert Pat Choate, out of the debates.
Russell Verney, national coordinator for the Reform party, said Perot was left out of this year's debates because of fear, not because he wasn't in a likely position to win the election.
"In '92, Perot was at the same point in the polls when he was invited to the debates as he was in '96, when he wasn't," Verney said. "But this time, he was on the Reform ticket. Democrats and the GOP don't want a new political party; it's a threat to them."
Perot continues to campaign on the issues that spear-headed his 1992 bid for the White House - balancing the budget, reforming campaign laws, opposing the North American Free Trade Agreement and requiring public support before the institution of any tax increases.
- Daily Staff Reporter Bram Elias contributed to this report.