On February 10, the Libertarian Party national committee chose El Paso, Texas as the site for its 2028 presidential convention. There has never before been a presidential convention held in that city. The date is tentatively February 18-21, 2028. If confirmed, that will be the earliest presidential convention held by the Libertarian Party since the 1992 presidential election. Thanks to Independent Political Report for this news.
The Mississippi Senate failed to vote on SC 518, and it is now beyond the legislative deadline for bills to have passed their house of origin. SC 518 would have restored the statewide initiative, which was eliminated by a 2021 ruling of the State Supreme Court. This is the fourth legislative session in a row in which attempts to revive the initiative have failed.
The New York Times has run a lengthy obituary for Edward H. Crane, who died February 10. It mentions his Libertarian Party activism around the presidential election of 1980.
Alabama HB 392, which would end statewide partisan elections for Public Service Commissioner, seems unlikely to pass. See this story.
Bill Whalen, a California political analyst and research fellow at the Hoover Institution, here describes how the California top-two system causes massive insincere campaign spending. Typically Democratic candidates direct spending to influence which Republican manages to qualify as one of the top two contenders in the primary.
Whalen also notes that the top-two system does not boost moderates.
