The United States Pirate Party (USPP) is an American political party founded in 2006 by Brent Allison and Alex English.Milchman, Eli "The Pirates Hold a Party", Wired Magazine, 2006-06-20. Retrieved on 2009-02-20, The party's platform is aligned with the global Pirate movement, and supports reform of copyright laws to reflect open source and free culture values, government transparency, protection of privacy and civil liberties. The United States Pirate Party also advocates for evidence-based policy, egalitarianism, meritocracy and the hacker ethic as well as the rolling back of corporate personhood and corporate welfare. The USPP has also made a priority to advocate for changes in the copyright laws and removal of patents. It is the belief of the party that these restrictions greatly hinder the sharing and expansion of knowledge and resources.

The party's national organization has existed in multiple incarnations since its 2006 founding. Its most recent is the Pirate National Committee (PNC), formed in 2012 as a coalition of state parties. The PNC officially recognizes Pirate parties from 10 states, and tracks and assists in the growth of more state parties throughout the United States. The board of the USPP is the board of the PNC. The chair of the Pirate National Committee is known as the "Captain". The current Captain is Jolly Mitch.

History The Pirate Party was founded in June 2006 by University of Georgia graduate student Brent Allison in response to the success of the Swedish Pirate Party. Its platform was focused primarily on copyright reform and freedom from Internet censorship. The party first attempted to register in Utah during the 2007/2008 election cycle and failed to collect the required number of Statements of Support.Cheng, Jacqui "US Pirate Party seeks legitimacy, starts in Utah", Ars Technica, 2007-08-09. Retrieved on 2009-02-20. In 2011, the Massachusetts Pirate Party became the first legally recognized Pirate Party in the US. By 2011, the Pirate Party reported over 3,000 members nationwide.Downie, James (2011-01-24) Avast Network, The New Republic

In 2012, a coalition of state Pirate parties formed the Pirate National Committee (PNC). By July of that year, the PNC drafted and adopted a new constitution, which outlined a broader ideology inspired by Rick Falkvinge's Pirate Wheel.Falkvinge, Rick "The Pirate Wheel", Falkvinge on Infopolicy. Retrieved on 2012-08-19.

On 1 February 2026, the party voted unanimously to officially leave Pirate Parties International (PPI), citing its stance on the Gaza genocide and the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, which it views as inconsistent with Pirates' universal promotion of the right to self-determination, as well as perceived incompatibilities in the affiliations and prior work of a senior PPI officer with Pirate principles. In their statements concerning their resignation and distancing from the PPI, they are also specifically and particularly critical of the Pirate Party Germany on this matter.

Elections

In 2015, Massachusetts Pirate Party Quartermaster Steve Revilak became the first pirate in the United States to be elected to office, elected to Arlington town meeting.

On July 2, 2022, the United States Pirate Party became a member of the Pirate Parties International, an umbrella organization, comprising 31 parties all over the world at the time of the USPP's admission. They left officially on February 1, 2026.

Ethan Osborne, captain of the Kentucky Pirate Party, ran for Congress in Kentucky's 4th congressional district during the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections, finishing in 3rd place with over 10,000 votes or 3.9%. This is the largest number of votes for a Pirate candidate in US history as of 2022.

Party members voted to endorse the 2024 Vermin Supreme presidential campaign during their national convention in Bensenville, Illinois, which took place from June 1 to June 2.

Name The Pirate Party defends their oft-criticized name in the preamble of the PNC's constitution:

Ideology

Factions within the Pirate Party include left-libertarians, classical liberals, anarchists, progressives, and radical centrists. Many Pirates explicitly decline to identify with any particular political ideology or philosophy. These more ideologically unaffiliated members of the party have expressed their concerns to instead "do what works" rather than be driven by a particular ideology.

The Pirate Party's platform originally centered on issues of copyright. "Like its international counterparts, the USPP's main practical concerns are digital intellectual property and privacy laws—specifically, the abolition of a 1998 digital U.S. copyright law, the reduction of copyrights to 14 years (from 95 years after publication, or 70 years after the author's death), and the expiration of patents that don't result in significant progress within four years (as opposed to 20 years)."

In 2012, the party began an expansion of its platform, inspired by the Pirate Wheel. The party emphasizes the cultural values of the hacker ethic, open source and free culture, strong protection of individual civil liberties, government transparency, participatory governance, and evidence-based policy. It solidified these tenets by publishing a series of essays in January 2012 where it voiced its values using quotations from historical figures, including Benjamin Franklin ("They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety"), Mark Twain ("Only one thing is impossible for God: to find any sense in any copyright law on the planet"), Albert Camus ("The only way to deal with an un-free world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion") and Thomas Jefferson ("Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty") in order to highlight the timelessness, urgency, and consensual agreement on its positions related to free culture.

PNC Captain Before 2012, the chairman of the party was elected every July by a membership vote, as established in the party constitution. After the 2012 formation of the PNC, the role's name was changed to captain. As of July 5th, 2025, there is also a Captain for the youth wing, Young Pirates USA (YPUSA). Name From To Brent Allison June 6, 2006 June 9, 2006 Joshua Cowles and David Sigal June 9, 2006 May 2007 Andrew Norton May 2007 September 2008 Glenn Kerbein September 2008 July 2009 Ryan Martin July 2009 December 29, 2009 Bradley Hall December 29, 2009 January 28, 2010 Brittany Phelps January 28, 2010 July 15, 2011 Bradley Hall July 15, 2011 April, 2012 Travis McCrea April, 2012 November 14, 2012 Lindsay-Anne Brunner November 14, 2012 January 28, 2015 Andrew Norton January 28, 2015 March 1, 2016 Joseph Klein March 1, 2016 May 15, 2017 Lindsay-Anne Gorski May 15, 2017 January 28, 2019 Meg Cochran January 28, 2019 October 21, 2019 Joseph Onoroski October 21, 2019 November 25, 2019 Lindsay-Anne Gorski November 25, 2019 December 2, 2019 Joseph Klein December 2, 2019 June 6, 2021 Rose Klein June 6, 2021 June 5, 2022 Anthony Jay "AJ" Porter June 5, 2022 August 6, 2023 Drew Bingaman August 6, 2023 July 5th, 2025 "Jolly" Mitch Davilo July 5th, 2025 Incumbent

Officers Chair – Mitch Davilo Vice Chair – Blase Henry Treasurer – Eli McGee Secretary – Lily Boyt State Moderator - Joseph Onoroski Auditor – Joel Lightfoot Swarmcare Manager – Wanda Ward Director of the Online - Mars Bale Director of Public Relations - Rowan Tipping Co-Captains of Young Pirates USA - Jack Leisey and Lily Boyt

State parties State Founded PNC Member Notes Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Became PNC members on July 27, 2025. Arkansas California August 1, 2020 Chicagoland Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. Readmitted at the June 23, 2024 meeting. Georgia Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois 2012 The Illinois Pirate Party was founded in 2012, but by year's end was largely inactive and never received official recognition from the USPP and Pirate National Committee outside of observer status. The party reorganized in 2020 and became PNC members October 10, 2021. Indiana 2021 Became PNC members on October 17, 2021. Iowa Kansas Kentucky 2022 Became PNC members on March 3, 2022. Officially moved to probationary status on the February 5, 2023 meeting following Kentucky's announcement of their departure from the United States Pirate Party on February 2, 2023. Louisiana Maine Maryland 2026 Became PNC members on May 3, 2026. Massachusetts 2010 Ran first pirate candidate in the United States history, JP Hollembaek, in 2012. As of June 2021, the only state party to elect a pirate to office with the election of Steve Revilak. Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York August 25, 2010 Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. North Carolina North Dakota Northern Mariana Islands Ohio Admitted at the January 4th, 2026 meeting. Oklahoma January 18, 2010 The Pirate Party of Oklahoma was formed on January 18, 2010, with the signing of its constitution,"Constitution of the Pirate Party of Oklahoma" 2010-01-18. Retrieved on 2010-08-14. and the filing of a motion of intent to form a political party with the Oklahoma Election Board. The founding chairman was Marcus Kessler. The party was named an official state chapter of the United States Pirate Party on January 19, 2010."Official Minutes of Meeting" 2010-01-19. Retrieved on 2010-08-14. The party mounted a signature drive to try to gain access to the Oklahoma ballot, but was unsuccessful. The party did not run any candidates for office in 2010. Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. Oregon November 9, 2010 The Oregon Pirate Party was given official state party status on November 9, 2010. Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. Pennsylvania 2022 Became PNC members on June 5, 2022. Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Became PNC members on November 26, 2023. Moved to probationary status on the June 28, 2026 meeting, and moved to observer status on the August 2, 2026 meeting. US Virgin Islands Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Officially moved to probationary status on the January 30, 2022 meeting, and moved to inactive status on the March 6, 2022 meeting. West Virginia Wisconsin July 4, 2012 Formerly registered with the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. Officially moved to probationary status on the March 13, 2022 meeting, moved to inactive status on the February 5, 2023 meeting. Wyoming

See also Copyright in the United States List of United States political parties Patent pirate

References

External links Official Website Official USPP Wiki