Mr. Dodge said he had no personal dislike for Mr. Amondson, who is making his first run for political office this year. A while back, Mr. Amondson wrote to Mr. Dodge to try to land a spot on the original Prohibition Party ticket, as vice president, Mr. Dodge said. But the party's elder statesman had already chosen a running mate. Mr. Dodge did say that while "I've never met this gentleman, Mr. Amondson," he admired the Billy Sunday routine, agreed with the message and said he might invite him to join the party after the election.
"I think he may not have known exactly what he was getting into," Mr. Dodge said in a telephone interview from the original Prohibition Party headquarters, his home in Lakewood, Colo. "He's probably a very nice man."
He added, though, that he was irked that Mr. Amondson and other splinter Prohibition Party candidates were using his party's name.
As impractical as Mr. Amondson's quest may seem, historically, the Prohibition Party is not political chopped liver.
Some have even considered the Prohibition Party -- which drew only 208 votes in 2000, down from 1,298 in 1996, according to Ballot Access News, which tracks third parties -- the Ralph Naderesque spoiler of the late 1880's and early 1900's.
Before Prohibition, in 1920, the party once claimed more than 200,000 supporters. Its candidates may have drawn enough votes -- 25,000 in New York State in 1884 -- to cost Republicans the presidential elections of 1884 and 1916, when Grover Cleveland and Woodrow Wilson won by slim margins, said Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News. And in the early part of the 20th century, with a Florida governor and a California congressman elected, the Prohibition Party made a respectable showing on the political scene.
But those heady days died with the speakeasy.
Now, one of the rogue Prohibitionists who recruited Mr. Amondson, Jim Hedges, is the only anti-alcohol partisan in the nation known to hold elected office, as the tax assessor for Thompson Township in Pennsylvania.
Public domain image of Jim Hedges from the  Partisan Prohibition Historical Society website
U.S.  presidential candidate Jim Hedges of , Pennsylvania took some time to answer a few questions about the Prohibition Party and his 2012 presidential campaign. 

The Prohibition Party is the third oldest existing political party in the United States, having been established in 1869. It reached its height of popularity during the late 19th century. The party heavily supported the , which banned the sale of alcohol, and resulted in the US period known as  (1919–33). It was repealed in 1933.  The party has declined since this period, but has continued to nominate candidates for the presidential election.

In 2003, the party split into two factions. Preacher  and perennial candidate  were nominated for the presidency by their respective factions. After Dodge's death in 2007, the party reunified and named Amondson as its sole presidential nominee for 2008. During the election, Amondson was interviewed by ''Wikinews''.  He died in 2009, leaving an opening in the party for 2012.

Jim Hedges is a longtime  activist, who holds the distinction of the first individual of the 21st century (and the first since 1959) to be elected to a political office under the Prohibition Party banner. In 2001, he was elected as the Thompson Township , and was re-elected to the post in 2005.  He served until his term expired in 2010. Hedges declared his intent to run for the Prohibition Party presidential nomination on February 18, 2010.  This marks his first run for the presidency.