Libertarian Jeremy Todd, a candidate for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District seat, has announced the endorsement of former presidential candidate and Republican U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, who said he is backing Todd to continue the work of outgoing incumbent Thomas Massie.
The Todd campaign announced the endorsement Thursday, sharing a statement attributed to Paul, who represented Texas in Congress as a Republican across 12 terms before retiring in 2013. Paul is an influential figure in the libertarian movement, having been the Libertarian Party’s 1988 presidential nominee and later seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2012 on a platform sympathetic to several libertarian issues.
“It is my great pleasure to endorse Jeremy Todd for Kentucky’s 4th US House District,” Paul said in the statement. “The people of the Fourth District of Kentucky have long demonstrated their love for America, the Constitution, and for their God-given liberties. Jeremy Todd is the only candidate who will continue to uphold these values we cherish and will continue Thomas Massie’s long fight for Liberty.”
Todd responded by thanking Paul and praising his contributions to the libertarian movement, including his work in more recent years with Daniel McAdams of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. “We truly stand on the shoulders of giants and there are none bigger than Ron Paul,” Todd wrote, adding that without Paul, “this movement would not exist.”
Todd is running to succeed outgoing U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, himself an influential figure in libertarian circles who first won the seat in a 2012 special election. Massie lost the Republican primary in May to Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL endorsed by President Donald Trump, in what became the most expensive U.S. House primary in history. Gallrein received 54.9% of the vote to Massie’s 45.1%, following a contest in which the campaigns and outside groups spent approximately $37 million.
The Libertarian Party of Kentucky then nominated Todd at a special convention on May 20, the day following Massie’s primary defeat. Todd said at the time that he would not have entered the race had Massie won renomination. His campaign later collected more than 750 petition signatures in just 12 days to qualify for the November ballot.
Todd will face Gallrein and Democratic nominee Melissa Strange in the general election.
Thank you to Ron Paul and best wishes to Libertarian Jeremy Todd for electoral success to carry on the fight for liberty by Thomas Massie.