A member of the New Hanover County Board of Education in North Carolina stated this month that he has changed his voter registration from Republican to Libertarian. In doing so, he becomes the state’s only current elected official affiliated with the Libertarian Party.
In a March 10 statement released through the Libertarian Party of North Carolina, David Perry said he registered as a Libertarian earlier that same day, expressing dissatisfaction with the direction of the Republican Party. Perry, who said he developed an early interest in the ideas of limited government and individual liberty while growing up in New Hampshire, was first elected to the board in 2024 as a Republican for a four-year term.
“Unfortunately, the Republican Party has changed dramatically,” Perry said in the statement. “While most rank-and-file registered Republicans are good people, the party establishment seems only interested in accumulating wealth and power.”
Perry also referenced George Washington’s 1796 Farewell Address, saying he agreed with Washington’s warning that political parties could eventually become “tools for cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men” seeking to “usurp the power of the people.”
The statement said that while Perry initially found common ground with his peers, he has since clashed with some fellow board members on several issues. Among them was a proposed pilot program involving artificial intelligence tools in schools, which Perry opposed over concerns about student privacy. He has also sought to redirect disputes over books and curriculum toward defending what he described as the right of students to free expression.
Perry was previously involved with the Libertarian Party, having run as its nominee for North Carolina’s 19th House district in 2018, finishing third in a field of three. He later sought the same seat as a Republican in 2020 but lost the primary to incumbent Charlie Miller.
In explaining his decision to affiliate with the Libertarian Party now, Perry said both the Republican and Democratic parties have created barriers to unaffiliated candidates seeking ballot access. As a result, he said the Libertarian Party has become the largest alternative for independent-minded candidates. Perry did, however, note that he does not see eye to eye with the party on every issue, specifically citing abortion policy and stating that he still prefers the Republican Party’s position on the matter.
Perry said he intends to continue serving on the school board in accordance with the “constitutional conservative” principles he campaigned on during the 2024 election, thanking grassroots Republican supporters who helped elect him at the time. He added that his criticism of the Republican Party was directed at its leadership rather than individual voters, whom he called “patriots.”
Be First to Comment