Libertarian Party of Texas Files 193 Candidates for Office

by: Karl-Thomas Musselman

Wed Jan 06, 2010 at 05:44 PM CST

Texas has always been a strong state for the Libertarian Party and this year they are proving that there is no stopping their growth in the Lone Star State, filing a record breaking 193 candidates for office. While the Libertarians do not have primaries (they have nominating conventions), they have filed candidates for every single statewide office and every single congressional district. That's something the Democratic Party has failed to accomplish for multiple cycles now, including this year where it skipped the Comptrollers office, a couple statewide judicial seats, and over a half dozen congressional seats.

Filing candidates does not mean that any of them are competitive and it's a sure bet that not a single one of them will actually win. But they play an important role in building their party, and are disruptive in state house races where they typically help Democrats in close races by pulling a disproportionately higher number of voters away from Republicans than Democrats. Readers may remember in 2008 when phone calls were made from GOP operatives to strong-arm Libertarians out of key races.

Interesting to note, for county level offices, the most peculiar density of Libertarian candidates is out in Upshur County in East Texas where 4 candidates filed, the same number that filed in Dallas. Austin leads the way with 8 county level candidates while Harris County only got 1.

The Texas Libertarian Party needs to win 5% of the vote in at least one statewide office in order to qualify for automatic ballot access in 2012, which they will earn this cycle by pulling ~20 against Susan Combs for Comptroller if past history is any indication.

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Libertarian Party of Texas Files 193 Candidates for Office | 4 comments

GOP Strong Arm tactics.... (0.00 / 0)

Interesting how so many "defenders of liberty" turned tail in 2008 when offered a few shiny pebbles from the GOP. Just wait - it will happen again. There are two types of Libertarians: The crazy social misfit types and the pissed off, disenfranchised former republicans who can't follow rules. What they really crave is acceptance - not "liberty".

by: mrcarter1 @ Thu Jan 07, 2010 at 01:59:18 AM UTC

by: you @ soon

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We had one in CD 22 who filed as a Democrat (0.00 / 0)

In CD 22, Pete Clueless Olson's district, we have a LaRouche and a nobody filing as democrats. And we have libertarian who has filed for many years. Everyone one of them suck. big time.

It is embarassing.

by: johncoby @ Thu Jan 07, 2010 at 14:07:15 PM UTC

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Soak the ballot (0.00 / 0)

It's easy to fill the ballot with UNIX admins. It doesn't mean they are qualified to run for office or that someone would elect them.

I will admit I have met a couple Libertarian candidates who are worthy. But the vast majority, especially in Texas, are the furthest thing from it.

But the Libertarians have to fill the ballot to keep getting their obligatory 3% of the vote. Otherwise they will lose their status of getting automatic placement on the ballots.

by: John McClelland @ Thu Jan 07, 2010 at 15:40:29 PM UTC

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It's more than just keeping ballot access (2.00 / 1)

Libertarians run in order to push their philosophy of governance. They don't care about winning and losing, as they never win, anyway. They just want to make a statement, and to have their ideas considered, and they do it everywhere they can. That commitment deserves our respect.

Most Libertarian policies are argued from first principles, consequences be damned, and are wildly unrealistic. The Libertarian Party is an amalgam of laissez faire capitalists and Jeffersonian purists who don't realize that 200 years have passed. Still, I'm grateful that the Libertarians are out there, arguing for personal liberty, and forcing the rest of us to factor those Jeffersonian ideas into our thinking.

And if they peel off a few votes that would otherwise go to the Republicans, so much the better.

by: LSadun @ Thu Jan 07, 2010 at 20:11:43 PM UTC

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Libertarian Party of Texas Files 193 Candidates for Office | 4 comments

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