The Voice of America has this story about the race for the Libertarian presidential nomination. Thanks to the Wayne Root campaign for the link.

The rollcall is finished at the Constitution Party national convention, and the results are a first ballot victory for Chuck Baldwin of Florida, for president. Baldwin was the party’s vice-presidential candidate in 2004. Thanks to the Alan Keyes web site www.alankeyes.com for broadcasting a live showing of the rollcall, and also thanks to ThirdPartyWatch. The final vote was: Baldwin 383.8; Keyes 125.7; Max Riekse 4.5; Daniel Imperato 1; Susan Duzey 1. The Keyes total was buoyed by strong support from California, and Keyes also won the most votes from Alaska, Maryland, Missouri, and Oklahoma.

Before the vote was taken, a procedural vote settled that Ron Paul, who had not sought the party’s nomination, was not a valid choice at the convention roll-call.

The New Mexico Secretary of State’s office has finished checking the petition of Ralph Nader’s Independent Party. The petition has enough valid signatures. The Secretary of State is still working on verifying the Constitution Party petition.

Nader chose to qualify a new party in New Mexico, rather than qualifying as an independent presidential candidate, because the number of signatures for a new party is only one-sixth as many signatures. By contrast, in 2004, he did the independent presidential petition.