LP News November-December 1978
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
VOLUME 6, NUMBER 44 LIBERTARIAN PARTY NEWS NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1978 Randolph Wins in Alaska; 375,000 for Clark Alaska’s Dick Randolph became the first between the Republican and the Democrat: Libertarian elected in a partisan race when James Kirk, with 23,771 votes for Attorney he won his race for the State Assembly General (4.5%), and Aaron Leonard, with from District 20 (Fairbanks). 21,032 votes for Corporations Commis¬ Ed Clark, Libertarian Party nominee for sioner (4.1%). The leading statewide vote Governor of California, rolled up nearly getter was Brad Blair, who polled 35,032 375,000 votes, or 5.5%, in his campaign. votes (7.2%) for State Mine Inspector. The In Arizona, LP candidates took over 4% gubernatorial candidate, Gene Lewter, of the aggregate vote total cast in the state, took 10,400 votes (1.9%), well over twice while in Nevada and Hawaii, strong show¬ the total for the only other third party ings by Libertarians assured the party of candidate in the race. automatic ballot status in 1980. In Congressional races, results ranged These are a few of the highlights of the from 1.1% in the district represented by recent election results for the Libertarian Morris Udall, to 15.0% by Kathleen Party. An analysis of the results shows a Cooke, running against incumbent Demo¬ clear upward trend for the LP since 1976, crat Bob Stump with no Republican and many LP candidates in individual races nominee in the race. polled unprecedentedly high percentages In local legislative races, Libertarians for a small party. averaged between two and five percent of State-by-state reports on each race all votes cast in most races. Because two follow. Complete returns, where available, candidates are elected from each district in are on page 3. the Arizona House, the results indicate that’ * + * between four and ten percent of the voters ALABAMA in each district voted for at least one LP candidate. Roger MacBride appeared on the Presi¬ This billboard, with its succinct message, was prominently displayed in a Chicago suburb dential ballot in Alabama in 1976, but 1978 CALIFORNIA during the weeks prior to the November election. was the first year in which LP candidates Ed Clark’s total of 374,074 votes more GEORGIA ran for lower offices. Michael Erdey, an running for Trustee of the University of than doubled the nationwide total received engineer and former Hungarian refugee, Georgia’s sole LP candidate, Michael Illinois, led all LP candidates with over 44,000 votes. The LP totals were well polled between six and seven thousand by Roger MacBride in 1976. Clark’s per¬ Lipson, poiied a respectable 2.8% of the ahead of all other third votes—about one percent—in his race for centage, 5.5, was the highest for a third vote in his contest for a State Representa¬ party results in the U.S. Senate seat created by the death of party candidate in California since the tive seat from Atlanta. Lipson was the first Illinois. Sen. James Allen. Former State Chair 1940’s. Clark received the editorial en¬ Libertarian ever to run for office in INDIANA dorsement Harvey Crumhorn of Huntsville received of the Bakersfield Californian Georgia, a state noted for its extremely Three candidates represented the first 2,250 votes, or 3.1%, in his race for the (60,000 circulation) as well as several restrictive ballot access law. electoral effort for the LP in Indiana smaller Fifth Congressional District seat held by papers, and polled over ten percent HAWAII history. Craig Fisher, running for the of the vote in two counties Third Democrat Ronnie Flippo; there was no (Kern and State Chair Mike Rossell received over Congressional District seat in the Nevada). Clark’s greatest South Bend Republican in the race, and Flippo had strength was in 49,000 votes, or 22%, in a statewide race area, took slightly over one suburban northern counties near San Fran¬ won 100% of the votes in 1976. for Board of Education, qualifying the LP percent; John Rothrock, in the Sixth Con¬ cisco and Sacramento. The showing of the Alabama candidates for automatic ballot status in 1980. Rossell gressional District (Indianapolis area) took Other Libertarian candidates included wa mildly surprising, as the LP is quite competed in a ten-way race for seven seats; slightly under one percent, and Rebecca National Chairman David small and neither candidate spent over Bergland, only two Republicans were in the race, Burris, a candidate for a county office, $100. MacBride had polled only 1,500 running for an Orange County Sate Senate neither of whom won. received two percent in her Indianapolis— votes in Alabama in 1976. seat; Jim Gallagher, running for an Orange LP members concentrated on Rossell’s area race. (Continued on page 7) ALASKA County Assembly seat; and Ed Ogawa, race and those of Congressional candidates running for the Assembly in Los Dick Randolph led a slate of four Liber¬ Angeles. Peter Larsen and Amelia Fritts, both of tarians who made a surprisingly strong Bergland received over 14,000 votes, or whom received about 3% of the vote, twice 5.8%, more showing in a seventeen-person race for six representing than the margin what an LP Congressional candidate in between the seats in the State Legislature. Randolph Republican and the Democrat; 1976 polled. finished sixth, with nearly 6,000 votes Gallagher and Ogawa polled 4% and 3% LP gubernatorial candidate Gregory (35.3%); Libertarians Bruce Boyd, Bruce respectively. Reeser received about 1,100 votes, and re¬ Ballot status for the LP in California is Wammack, and Butch Stein finished ported no expenditures on his campaign. eighth, tenth, and eleventh, respectively, undetermined, pending expected legal IDAHO and ahead of four of the six Republicans in action. Clark’s percentage, as well as the LP State Chair Larry Fullmer took number of the race. The total vote cast for four Liber¬ registered Libertarians, are both 15.1% of the vote in a three-way race for more than the minimum tarians was within 1,000 votes of the total requirements State Senate from the Pocatello area. needed for a for six Republicans. party to retain ballot status, Fullmer had expected to run better, but his once obtained. The LP had not Randolph will join four Democrats and previously efforts were damaged by the closeness of obtained ballot status in California, the contest between the one Republican from the Fairbanks district Democrat, who however. when the State Legislature convenes in won narrowly, and the Republican. According to Fullmer, “I knew I was in January. COLORADO trouble when many of the people I talked According to Randolph, only a last-min¬ Preliminary results indicate that LP to told me that they’d love to vote for me, ute campaign blitz by the Democratic slate National Vice Chair Mary Louise “M.L.” but they just couldn’t let one of the other prevented the Libertarians from winning a Hanson received 2.5% of the state-wide second seat. The Democrats candidates win.” apparently vote for Treasurer, while candidates for Other LP candidates included Peter explicity attacked the Libertarian posi¬ legislative seats took one to six percent in tion on victimless crimes and education, Hull, who took over 2% in a State Senate three-way races. Among the LP legislative z while race in Blackfoot, and Rodger Stevens, promising a wide range of govern¬ candidates was former LP National Chair 05 o who over a Z in ment services if they were elected. Dave Nolan. polled 5% in three-way State o 1— ARIZONA Senate race near Pocatello. o o Hanson received nearly 20,000 votes, far o O ILLINOIS LU The Arizona LP registered the best CNI LU more than any other statewide third party cc The LP slate of statewide candidates Q- overall showing of any state party in some cc h- candidate. CJ CO 40 improved substantially on their 1976 show¬ o contests, taking over 4% of the total of Q LU CONNECTICUT o every vote cast in Arizona. (Under a recent ings, with gubernatorial candidate Georgia II D Shields cu c a court decision, the LP would have needed The LP fielded two candidates for the receiving 11,420 votes and U.S. +-> o LU state Senate candidate Bruce Green taking LU 5% of the total to retain ballot status auto¬ legislature: Bob Stone, who received 2 w O) 0C £ cc matically; further legal action to overturn 117 votes, or 1.4%, for the State House, 16,320 votes, twice MacBride’s total. The Q_ c ID _C O this and Wayne Hill, who received 224 votes, or LP candidate for State Comptroller, Mark particularly stringent requirement is O) t— </» Q contemplated.) 0.6%, for the State Senate. Stone’s per¬ Wallace, received more than the difference e si < Two of the statewide Libertarian candi¬ centage automatically qualifies the LP for between the Democrat and the Republican, dates polled more votes than the difference ballot status in his district. nearly 22,000 votes. And Bill Mitchell, Page 2 LIBERTARIAN PARTY NEWS Nov.-Dec. 1978 From the Chair David P. Bergland Where Do We Go From Here? By David P. reflection should lead one to Bergland conclude that The opportunities for libertarian acti¬ Party’s position and, specifically, in both groups need each other and that re¬ vism at the present time are tremendous. determining whether the LP would partici¬ So that was it! The 1978 elections are his¬ cruitment of new activists will require pro¬ As a result of libertarian campaign activit¬ pate in a coalition to effect that particular tory.