Right-wing journalist Tucker Carlson is reportedly at the forefront of a plan from former allies of US president Donald Trump to form a breakaway third American political party.

Carlson held a planning meeting at his home in Maine last week, attended by Republican representative Thomas Massie, and former representative Marjorie Taylor Greene.

Both Massie and Taylor Greene are former allies turned vocal critics of the US president.

Carlson, 57, is a prominent voice in US conservative movements. A former Fox News host, he has hosted The Tucker Carlson Show since 2023.

He has had a love/hate relationship with Trump, and was once one of the president's closest advisers. In a lawsuit against Fox over false claims about Dominion Voting Systems, texts from Carlson emerged in which he said he "passionately hates" Trump.

The pair made up before Trump's 2024 re-election, with Carlson actively campaigning for him.

However, their relationship broke down over the Iran war, with Carlson arguing it is a betrayal of Trump's 'America First' campaign pledges.

The Iran war was also the catalyst for Taylor Greene's fallout with Trump, she had previously been one of the key figures in the president's MAGA movement.

Various US media reports have claimed Carlson is serious about a third-party effort. He fuelled this speculation in a livestream by outlining his own '10-point plan' for the future of the United States.

The figures at the meeting, led by Massie and Taylor Greene, actively encouraged Carlson to run for president in 2028, Axios reported.

Third-party movements have tried, and failed, to challenge the stranglehold the Republican and Democratic parties have on US politics on a number of occasions.

We said no more foreign wars and we meant it and supported Donald Trump because he made that promise.

But he’s betrayed us all.

Our commitment is America First for all Americans, right, left, and center.

The movement has begun. pic.twitter.com/mZXadw0kBr— Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@FmrRepMTG) August 1, 2026

The likes of the Libertarian Party and the Green Party often run candidates and attempt to influence policy but have little success.

The most successful attempt in recent times was the Reform Party, not to be confused with the current British political party Reform UK.

After Ross Perot received 18.9 percent of the popular vote as an independent candidate in the 1992 presidential election, he founded the Reform Party.

Perot subsequently won 8.4 percent of the popular vote in the 1996 presidential election. Trump once sought the Reform Party's presidential nomination ahead of the 2000 election, before withdrawing.

There is no evidence that a modern equivalent would have more success than previous third-party attempts. However, the fact Carlson and other former MAGA figures are considering it highlights the divisions in the Republican Party, with its direction after Trump's presidency still very unclear.

Carlson's motives remain unclear. He has been widely criticised over his support for Russia, and infamously failed to challenge president over the invasion of Ukraine in an interview in 2024.