On November 7, 2007, Libertarian members won these significant non-partisan elections: Bill Lynn to the Davenport, Iowa Board of Alderman; Rob Oates to the Caldwell, Idaho, city council; Mark Owen to the Owasso, Michigan city council; Andy LeCureaux to the Hazel Park, Michigan city council; Mark Byrne to the Port Huron, Michigan city council; David Eisenbacher to the Troy, Michigan city council; T. J. Rohr to the Lenoir, North Carolina city council; Henry Boschen to the Roxobel, North Carolina town council. UPDATE: also, Ruben Perez was elected to the San Antonio River Authority.

Green Party members won these significant non-partisan elections: John Anton to the Portland, Maine city council; Luc Schuster to the Cambridge, Massachusetts school committee; Chuck Turner to the Boston, Massachusetts city council; Dan Robinson to the Takoma Park, Maryland city council; Larry Bragman and Lew Tremain to the Fairfax, California city council; Chris Simmons to the Loudon County, Virginia soil and water conservation board.

On November 7, the Constitution Party nominee for Agriculture Commissioner, Paul Riley, polled approximately 7.0% of the vote. He had both a Democratic and a Republican opponent. With 99% of the votes counted, Riley has 49,382 votes. The Republican nominee has 356,483 and the Democratic nominee has 295,151.

This is the highest percentage of the vote for a minor party candidate for state or federal office in Mississippi in at least 100 years, if one is including only races in which there was also a Democrat and a Republican in the race.

Although Strom Thurmond carried Mississippi for president in 1948, he was on the ballot in Mississippi as the Democratic nominee (Harry Truman was listed as an independent). In 1968, George Wallace carried Mississippi for president, but he was on the ballot as an independent candidate.

Mississippi voters in recent years have been very supportive of minor party nominees, if the race was one with only one major party in the race. For example, in 1998, Libertarian William Chipman polled 28.84% for U.S. House and even carried one populous county in his district, but he had no Republican opponent. In 2003, Reform Party nominee Billy Blackburn received 23.69% for Auditor, but he had no Democratic nominee.

Also in the November 7, 2007 election, a Constitution Party nominee for State Senate, Parker Dykes, running in the 35th district, polled approximately 32.1% in a two-party race.

On November 7, a Michigan state court will hear Grebner v State. This is the interesting lawsuit over whether Michigan’s presidential primary law is constitutional. The law provides that voters cannot vote in either major party presidential primary unless they sign in as either a Democrat or as a Republican. The law further provides that the contact information for these voters will be given to the appropriate major party, but that the information is otherwise secret. The plaintiff argues that such lists cannot be kept secret. Thanks to Tony Roza for this news.