Election Day Archive

Libertarians in Indiana Show Strong Signs of Growth, Win Three Local Races

Chris Spangle

Published: November 9, 2011

Libertarian candidates around Indiana posted strong numbers for third-party candidates on Election Day. The Libertarian Party of Indiana ran more candidates than any other state Libertarian Party at 45 candidates receiving a total of 59,510 votes.

Most notably, three candidates scored a victory:

Susan Bell was re-elected for the second time to the position of Hagerstown Judge. Bell was unopposed in the Wayne County election.
In Koskiusko County, Miccah Shepherd was a victor in his race for Claypool Clerk/Treasurer with 44% of the vote in a three-way race.
In Hancock County, Dennis Denney won his race for Shirley Town Council by ONE vote.

In Greenfield, a Libertarian candidate had one of the more impressive results in LPIN history. Phil Miller won 42% of the vote in a two-way race with a Republican. Miller, a former Libertarian Greenfield City Councilor, blanketed over 75% of the city with literature with an organized canvassing effort and local advertising.

Two other Mayoral candidates won double-digits in three way races:

In Anderson, Rob Jozwiak won 13.67% of the vote.
In Rushville, Debbie O’Neal won 15.35% of the vote.

In Warsaw, at-large City Council candidate Dan Stevens won 16% of the vote in a three-way race.

In Indianapolis, At-Large City-Council candidate Bill Levin won over 10,000 voters in the county-wide election. In District 24, sitting at-large City-County Councilor Ed Coleman was not successful in his bid for four more years. He won 24% of the vote.

“I want to thank everyone who came out to support my campaign in 2011,” said Coleman. “It was a great experience, and I am so proud of all of the great support from every level of the Libertarian Party. We had great infrastructure, and showed that Libertarians can run a campaign as well as the establishment. Unfortunately, straight-ticket voting because of the highly contested Mayor’s race was an obstacle our campaign could not overcome. I am confident that this will lay the foundation for a historic 2012 election, and for years to come in Marion County.”

Despite these short term ups and downs, the party had unprecedented activism in the closing weeks of the 2011 Election season.

“Our party passed another milestone towards electoral success in 2011,” said Sam Goldstein, Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Indiana. “These numbers don’t tell the entire story of this election cycle. Almost every campaign outside of Marion County ran effective, professional campaigns. Candidates like Jeff Spoonamore (Greenwood Mayor) and Matt Hisrich (Richmond City Council) put out yard signs, debated opponents, earned media, and made their opponents interview for a job. Inside Marion County, the county party canvassed over 95% of Ed Coleman’s district. They also staffed the polls inside and outside of the polls with over 40 people. These opportunities for those new to the Libertarian Party to learn the nuts and bolts of professional campaigns will be invaluable in 2012. I want to thank every candidate and volunteer for their efforts in this election season, and I want to thank voters for casting their ballot for Libertarians.”

View the complete list of results here.

Ballot Access News: Indiana Libertarian 2010 Legislative Candidate Set Record Going Back at Least 85 Years

LPIN Editor

Published: January 17, 2011

(By Richard Winger, originally posted at Ballot Access News.)

On November 2, 2010, Rex Bell, Libertarian nominee for Indiana State House, district 54, polled 20.78% of the vote in a race with both a Democrat and a Republican. That is the first time in at least 85 years that a minor party candidate for the Indiana legislature has polled over 20% of the vote in a race with both major parties.

The 54th district is in east central Indiana, and includes Henry and Wayne Counties, and a small part of Randolph County. Bell lives in Wayne County, where he placed ahead of the Democratic nominee. Bell’s wife, Susan Bell, has been elected as a Libertarian to local partisan office as a Judge, and the Libertarian Party has two other office-holders in that county who were elected in odd-year partisan elections.

Bell has run for this seat three times. The incumbent Republican has been in that seat since 1996. Bell received 14.31% in 2006, running against both a Democrat and a Republican. In 2008, the Democrats didn’t run anyone, and Bell polled 33.49% and carried eight of the 59 precincts in the district. In 2010, Bell rang the doorbells of a majority of voters in the district, and ran radio and newspaper ads. Here is his 2010 web page.

No minor party or independent candidate has been elected to the Indiana legislature since 1914, when two Progressive Party nominees were elected. Indiana has a straight-ticket device, which injures candidates who are running outside the two major parties.

2010 By the Numbers: A Final Look

Chris Spangle

Published: November 16, 2010

The final numbers are in for the 2010 elections, and Libertarians had a very good year. Our party exists to give a platform to true advocates of a smaller, less intrusive government in affairs both foreign and domestic. By looking at these numbers, more Hoosiers are willing to abstain from voting for the lesser of two evils. Our party is proud to give principles an option on the ballot.

We’d like to thank all of our candidates for putting their name on the line, taking shots from the other parties while responding with grace, giving solutions to problems rather bickering and talking points, and ensuring that more Hoosiers hear our message than ever before. And most of all, we thank YOU for your vote and support.

These highlights are brief because we aren’t able to write and tell you of all of the hard work by our 99 candidates, their volunteers, or the county parties that support them. Hopefully the overall growth in these numbers speak volumes about the effort that was put forth by the Libertarian Party of Indiana this election cycle. Our party’s growth even caught the attention of Indiana’s largest newspaper this past weekend.

Here are just some of the highlights:

Read the rest of this entry »

2010 By the Numbers: Statewide and Federal Races Show Growth

mwittlief

Published: November 4, 2010

A snap shot of the numbers from past cycles versus the numbers in the 2010 election (as of 11-4-10).

SOS:
Sink-Burris 2002: 60,937; 4.1%
Kole 2006: 54,381; 3.3%
Wherry 2010: 100,847; 5.9%

Auditor:
Parisi 2002: 49,030; 3.4%
Knipe 2010: 78,098; 4.6%

US Senate:
Hager 2000: 33,992; 1.6%
Barger 2004: 27,334; 1.1%
Osborn 2006: 168,820; 12.6% (2-way)
Sink-Burris 2010: 94,562; 5.4%

Combined US House (percentages include all 9 races in each year):
2002: 37,270; 2.4% (9 candidates)
2004: 35,470; 1.5% (7 candidates)
2006: 17,324; 1.0% (2 candidates)
2008: 47,306; 1.8% (5 candidates)
2010: 84,518; 4.8% (9 candidates)

LPIN Podcast: LPIN State Chair Sam Goldstein on Election Night Early Returns

Mike Kole

Published: November 3, 2010

As Election Night early returns rolled in, Libertarian Party of Indiana State Chair Sam Goldstein commented on the numbers- thus far, the highest seen for Libertarian candidates in the history of the LPIN.

Listen Here: LPIN State Chair Sam Goldstein

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Election Night Parties Planned Across the State

Chris Spangle

Published: November 2, 2010

Many Election night parties are planned around the state to celebrate the hard work of Libertarians in this past cycle. All are welcomed to attend any of these functions.

The State Party will have it’s election night gathering at the Antelope Club in downtown Indianapolis. Come congratulate Rebecca Sink-Burris, Mike Wherry, and many other candidates after the polls close!

Time: November 2, 2010 from 6pm to 11pm
Location: Antelope Club
Street: 615 N Delaware St.
City/Town: Indianapolis, IN 46204-1397
(This is a private club and those under 21 are allowed, but it is an adult atmosphere.)

LaPorte County‘s Election Night Party will be at Rother’s Pub in LaPorte on Pine Lake Ave after the polls close.

There will also be a gathering of Libertarians in Evansville.

Time: Tuesday, November 2 · 6:30pm – 11:30pm
Location: Chris Flener’s Home 2922 Langston Dr. Evansville, IN

Rex Bell will host a gathering for supporters in his home in Wayne County: 17059 State Road 38, 2 miles west of Hagerstown as soon as the polls close on Tuesday, to watch the Wayne County results, as well as from across the state.

Rush County will have a party for their poll workers and supporters after the polls close at the home of Paul and Joyce Morrell. To attend, please call Paul at 1-765-561-2130.

Anyone who volunteers at a polling site for at least 2 hours Tue. will be treated to eats and drinks at the Greg “No Bull” Knott for Congress celebration starting at 6:30p Tue. at Killroy’s on Kirkwood in Bloomington. Call Greg (812-345-9783) or his campaign manager Luke (317-850-6078) when you are ready to work and we will get you materials and assign you a polling location.

The Howard County group will hold court after the polls close in the pool room at the Half Moon tomorrow night from 7-10pm, please join us as we watch the election results, for a bite to eat, a beer and a much needed wind down to the election season.

May We Please Have Your Vote?

Chris Spangle

Published: November 2, 2010

Tip O’Neil is famous for the phrase, “All Politics is Local!” He wrote a book with the same title, and in it he tells the story of why asking people for their vote is so important.

In the story, he tells of his first campaign where one of his neighbors, Mrs. Elizabeth O’Brien, stopped him and said “Tom, I’m going to vote for you tomorrow even though you didn’t ask me to.”

He was stunned and said, “I’ve lived across the street from you for eighteen years. I cut your grass in the summer, I shovel your walk in the winter. I haul out your ashes. I didn’t think I had to ask for your vote.”

“Tom, let me tell you something: People like to be asked.”

So I think we’d be remiss if we didn’t email our supporters today and ask you for your vote today for our candidates.

We’ve worked very hard this campaign season to put good candidates in place and letting people know that voting third party is the right thing to do. We’ve worked hard at getting earned media, shining in debates, canvassing neighborhoods, raising money, and putting out ads.

It would be a shame if we forgot to actually ask you to vote for Libertarians in the process.

Please go to LPIN.org/candidates and look up those in your districts. For statewide races, please visit Rebecca Sink-Burris’ (US Senate) website here and Mike Wherry’s (Secretary of State) website here.

Thank you for your amazing support in 2010,
Chris Spangle
Executive Director of the Libertarian Party of Indiana