–This is an Op-Ed–
Rumors are beginning to swirl about the 2014 Governor race within the Libertarian Party. Chris Edes of Rochester has announced he wants to be the candidate. Another potential candidate has pre-announced to a limited audience (due to confidentiality I can’t name him or her).
Both candidates have a list of typical libertarian policy issues that are sure to draw yawns from voters. Neither has a clear theme or message, nor a plan to deliver that to voters.
As the last LP candidate I’d like to point out some evidence as to what works:
Whoever the LP candidate is, I suggest they develop a short and clear theme (“Stop Wasting Money” is not copyrighted) and that they deliver it to voters through radio advertising. It works.
Redlich moved to Florida.
Redlich seems like the most viable candidate at this point.
The membership also sold out and nominated a Republican instead of a Libertarian in 2006.
In both 1994 and 2006, the nominee dropped out mid-way, leaving us having to scramble to come up with new candidates.
Both Bob and John are good people and stepped into races lat in the season, and our numbers reflect that.
Lesson to be learned, in New York and nationwide: don’t sell out to a big name from the statist parties who pretends to be libertarian for the nanosecond when he has to in order to fraudulently obtain the nomination.
Well, now, here’s an entry in which I have some knowledge and experience.
George is correct: the only way to obtain ballot status in New York is by garnering at least 50,000 votes for Governor, which is why that race is so important. If we had ballot status right now, we would have saved $40,000 getting Gary Johnson and Jim Gray on the ballot last year, and would save a similar expenditure next summer too. I could run the entire petition campaign in an afternoon rather than six weeks.
No one ever came close to he 50K number for Governor until Warren Redlich in 2010. (Norma Segal got over 100,000 votes for Senate in 1992, but that was a fluke.)
Warren’s campaign was professional and focused, but lacked sufficient funding to get us that extra mile. The Green Party made it after several attempts and by running the same guy in 2010 as had run four years earlier.
Gigi’s campaign, and all local campaigns, are important. We are running several candidates this year from Long Island to Batavia (near Buffalo), all for local offices. But the Gov. race next year is critical, and that is where we must concentrate our efforts and limited funds.
Chris is correct that our budget (especially for such a high profile state) is miniscule. But we ain’t got no overhead, and every single penny goes towards ballot access and publicity.
Stern was a huge fucking insult. He played with us in ’94 and used the disclosure rules as an excuse when he tired of the rather cruel, sick joke. (His lawyers knew all about it from the very beginning.)
The result was a broken party with lots of anger and dissatisfied members, all caused by a statist Republican pig who thought it would help his ratings.
I thought all the financial disclosure rules dissuaded him before.
Maybe it’s time to revisit the Draft Howard Stern movement….
@2 Governor is the only race that can be used to change NY ballot status. They are an opposite of MA; getting them a ballot line makes it easy for them to keep ballot status and easier to put people on their ballot.
@4 — Hopefully after the hobo caucus gets him the nomination, he will do something about his look for the general…
https://www.facebook.com/ChrisEdesForGovernor
Edes looks absolutely hideous in his pictures, I mean that objectively and not to offend. He needs to learn that appearance DOES matter. He’s running for the most powerful office in America’s third largest state. It’s a big deal, and he needs to show voters he’s a serious candidate. That beard, disheveled long hair and 90’s looking over-sized glasses need to go.
The New York Libertarian Party has never had “party” status, and the only way it can get that status is to poll 50,000 votes for Governor.
How about forgetting the governor’s race and focusing on only a single campaign, Gigi Bowman for State Senate? Due to her relative national prominence within the Ron Paul community/ Liberty Movement she could get considerably more traction than the typical LP candidate.
I’m going to go ahead and assume the entire NYLP budget is under $20,000. That won’t be effective at all in a statewide race, but for a legislative district, it might be.
OK, Warren, come back to New York and run again!