Libertarian Party of Texas
Encyclopedia
The Libertarian Party of Texas is the state affiliate of the Libertarian Party
in Texas
, USA. The state chair is Patrick Dixon.
, Colorado
. Over the next five years, county affiliate parties were founded in Travis
, Harris
, Dallas
, and Bexar
counties.
In February 1980, Charles Fuller of Houston becomes the first Texas Libertarian to appear on the ballot as a Libertarian. (Previous candidates ran for write-in votes or as independents.) Fuller ran in a Special Election for State Representative District 80.
The party first qualified for statewide ballot access on September 1, 1982 with 41,000 petition signatures. The party ran 122 candidates that November. Legal issues making signature collection more difficult prevented the party from achieving ballot access in 1984, but it was able to collect the required 32,000 signatures in 1986 to once again make it on the ballot. Three statewide candidates achieved at least 5% of the vote that November, automatically granting the party ballot access for 1988.
In the 1990 statewide elections, gubernatorial candidate Jeff Daiell achieved 3.34% of the vote and Comptroller candidate Gill Grisham received 5.8%, guaranteeing ballot access through 1994.
On March 9, 1998, U.S. District Judge James Nowlin stopped the State of Texas from requiring voter registration numbers alongside ballot access petition signatures in Pilcher v. Rains, brought by the Libertarian Party of Texas. In every election since except that of 2002, at least one of the party's candidates achieved 5% of the vote, guaranteeing ballot access. In May 2004 the party easily met the state's signature requirement.
In the November 2006 elections, the party ran 168 candidates, and easily secured ballot access for 2008 in two-way races for state judicial positions, with the highest vote total going to Jerry Adkins for Supreme Court
Place 4: 830,331 votes, or 24.5%.
Unlike Republicans and Democrats, the Libertarian Party of Texas holds county, district, and state conventions to nominate their candidates for public office. The party also accepts no tax dollars for their conventions.
According to Texas law, no one may vote in the Libertarian conventions if they have already voted in the Republican or Democratic primaries. Nor may a person vote in the Libertarian convention, then sign a petition for another third-party or independent or write-in candidate.
.
The party received media attention when it announced on August 1 that Suzanna Hupp, a former Texas state representative, had called Jason Jordan and Joe Allport, two Libertarian candidates for state representative in districts Republicans were concerned with losing, asking them to drop out of the race.
Texas House District 130 candidate Joe Spencer received media attention in February 2010 as a finalist for Best Information Web Site by About.com part of the New York Times Company.
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, USA. The state chair is Patrick Dixon.
Overview
In 1971, Texas was one of the 13 original founding state parties at the first LP convention in DenverDenver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. Over the next five years, county affiliate parties were founded in Travis
Travis County, Texas
As of 2009, the U.S. census estimates there were 1,026,158 people, 320,766 households, and 183,798 families residing in the county. The population density was 821 people per square mile . There were 335,881 housing units at an average density of 340 per square mile...
, Harris
Harris County, Texas
As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 4,092,459, White Americans made up 56.6% of Harris County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 33.0% of the population. Black Americans made up 18.9% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.7% of Harris County's population...
, Dallas
Dallas County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,218,899 people, 807,621 households, and 533,837 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,523 people per square mile . There were 854,119 housing units at an average density of 971/sq mi...
, and Bexar
Bexar County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,392,931 people, 488,942 households, and 345,681 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,117 people per square mile . There were 521,359 housing units at an average density of 418 per square mile...
counties.
In February 1980, Charles Fuller of Houston becomes the first Texas Libertarian to appear on the ballot as a Libertarian. (Previous candidates ran for write-in votes or as independents.) Fuller ran in a Special Election for State Representative District 80.
The party first qualified for statewide ballot access on September 1, 1982 with 41,000 petition signatures. The party ran 122 candidates that November. Legal issues making signature collection more difficult prevented the party from achieving ballot access in 1984, but it was able to collect the required 32,000 signatures in 1986 to once again make it on the ballot. Three statewide candidates achieved at least 5% of the vote that November, automatically granting the party ballot access for 1988.
In the 1990 statewide elections, gubernatorial candidate Jeff Daiell achieved 3.34% of the vote and Comptroller candidate Gill Grisham received 5.8%, guaranteeing ballot access through 1994.
On March 9, 1998, U.S. District Judge James Nowlin stopped the State of Texas from requiring voter registration numbers alongside ballot access petition signatures in Pilcher v. Rains, brought by the Libertarian Party of Texas. In every election since except that of 2002, at least one of the party's candidates achieved 5% of the vote, guaranteeing ballot access. In May 2004 the party easily met the state's signature requirement.
In the November 2006 elections, the party ran 168 candidates, and easily secured ballot access for 2008 in two-way races for state judicial positions, with the highest vote total going to Jerry Adkins for Supreme Court
Texas Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Texas is the court of last resort for non-criminal matters in the state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, is the court of last resort for criminal matters.The Court is composed of a Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices...
Place 4: 830,331 votes, or 24.5%.
Unlike Republicans and Democrats, the Libertarian Party of Texas holds county, district, and state conventions to nominate their candidates for public office. The party also accepts no tax dollars for their conventions.
According to Texas law, no one may vote in the Libertarian conventions if they have already voted in the Republican or Democratic primaries. Nor may a person vote in the Libertarian convention, then sign a petition for another third-party or independent or write-in candidate.
2008 campaigns
The party fielded 173 candidates for federal, state, county, and local positions for the 2008 electionsUnited States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
.
The party received media attention when it announced on August 1 that Suzanna Hupp, a former Texas state representative, had called Jason Jordan and Joe Allport, two Libertarian candidates for state representative in districts Republicans were concerned with losing, asking them to drop out of the race.
2010 campaigns
In January 2010, the party announced 193 Libertarians filed for the primaries, including five gubernatorial candidates.Texas House District 130 candidate Joe Spencer received media attention in February 2010 as a finalist for Best Information Web Site by About.com part of the New York Times Company.