The Kentucky Libertarian Party has never been on the ballot for a statewide office, except in presidential years. Kentucky elects its state statewide officers in the odd years just before presidential election years. This year, the party plans to collect 5,000 signatures to run for at least one of the statewide races. Ken Moellman will run for State Treasurer. See this story. The party may nominate other statewide candidates.
The Secretary of State says that the party must submit a separate petition for each of its statewide nominees. However, in 2008, a different Secretary of State permitted the Libertarians to list both a presidential candidate and a U.S. Senate candidate on the same petition. The current Secretary of State says the difference is that in 2008, both offices were federal offices, which is a meaningless distinction. In 1971, the Kentucky Secretary of State allowed the American Party to list a full slate of statewide nominees on a single petition. That 1971 petition listed American Party nominees for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Auditor, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Agriculture Commissioner, and Clerk of the Supreme Court.
I wonder if the Kentucky LP is going to have a real effort behind this to actually make it happen.
If Ken Moellman makes it on the ballot for Treasurer in Kentucky is there a certain vote threshold that he could get where if he gets it the Libertarian Party would not have to petition to place candidates on the ballot for 2012?
The only vote test in Kentucky is 2% for President. No other office counts. I have been trying to persuade minor parties in Kentucky to lobby for a different definition of a qualified minor party, one that is similar to Louisiana and Colorado, and says a qualified minor party is one with at least 1,000 registered members. Kentucky does keep track of the number of registered voters in unqualified parties.
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