Several blogs that cover politics and election law have linked to this New York Times story about Joseph Kennedy, the Libertarian Party candidate for U.S. Senate in the January 19, 2010 special election in Massachusetts.
In my memory, the New York Times has never before devoted so much space to any Libertarian candidate for either house of Congress, in the entire history of the Libertarian Party. Libertarian Party candidates for U.S. Senate have held the balance of power in U.S. Senate elections in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, and 2008, but one would never know this from reading the New York Times, which generally never mentions Libertarian Party candidates for office other than President.
These prior Libertarian U.S. Senate candidates were: in 1998, Michael Cloud in Nevada; in 2000, Jeff Jared in Washington; in 2002, Kurt Evans in South Dakota; in 2006, Stan Jones in Montana; and in 2008, Charles Aldrich in Minnesota (the 2008 instance also featured an even larger effect by an Independence Party nominee).
New PR and Survey at LP.org:
http://www.lp.org/news/press-releases/libertarians-applaud-joe-kennedy-for-standing-firm
http://www.lp.org/poll/independent-libertarian-joe-kennedy-is-running-to-be-the-next-massachusetts-senator-election-da
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Greetings All,
Let’s not forget the impact that Libertarian Allen Buckley had in the 2008 US Senate race in Georgia. That was a race that republican Saxby Chambliss was supposed to easily win due to his incumbency and massive campaign warchest. Yet Allen’s persistence caused a run off in the end. There is a place for Libertarians and other third parties in the American political arena, as we continue to field candidates and force a discussion of the issues important to our respective groups the larger body politic will respond. Today’s radical Libertarian ideas are tomorrows mainstream thoughts.