John Tatar

Governor Candidate Tatar Also Files Petitions for First Libertarian Primary Ever

For Immediate Release

It’s a Race! – Governor Candidate John Tatar Also Files Petitions for First Libertarian Primary Ever

April 20, 2018

CONTACT:  Libertarian Party of Michigan Political Director Greg Stempfle, (313) 929-1789, or Libertarian Party of Michigan Chair Bill Hall, (616) 460-9516

Link to the May Michigan Libertarian

Lansing, MI – For the first time in Michigan history, there will be a contested gubernatorial primary election for a political party other than the Democrats and Republicans.

On April 19, 2018, John Tatar, a retired US Army Reserve Lt. Colonel, construction contractor and school teacher from Redford, became the second Libertarian candidate for governor to file petition signatures with the Bureau of Elections for the August 7 primary election.  This sets up a contested race for Michigan governor in the first ever Libertarian Party primary election, as Grand Rapids businessman Bill Gelineau filed his petition signatures for governor last month.  The Tatar campaign delivered petitions containing 18,521 signatures to the Bureau of Elections.  15,000 signatures of registered voters are required to qualify for the ballot.  The Tatar campaign is confident they comfortably met that threshold.

John Tater at the Michigan Bureau of Elections on April 19th.
John Tater at the Michigan Bureau of Elections on April 19th.

The Libertarian Party qualified as a “primary” party, eligible to nominate its candidates at the August 7 primary election just like the Democrats and Republicans, because 2016 Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson polled 172,136 votes in Michigan.  Gelineau and Tatar are the first non-Democrats or Republicans to qualify for a gubernatorial party primary in almost 50 years, and only the second and third since 1932.  And the Libertarian Party will be the first political party in Michigan history other than the Democrats and Republicans to host a contested gubernatorial primary election.

Candidates Gelineau and Tatar plan to actively campaign across the state for votes in the August 7 election.

Many candidates have also filed to run in the Libertarian Party primary for Congress, State Senate, State Representative, County Commissioner and Precinct Delegate, and many more are expected.

Unlike Democrats and Republicans, Libertarians support personal freedom and responsibility in both economic and social matters, and oppose foreign wars. Libertarians believe people should have the freedom to follow their own dreams in their own ways without government interference. That translates into support for cutting government spending, lower taxes, deregulation, free trade, a strong defense, gun rights, social tolerance and protecting personal privacy and civil liberties.

To learn more about John Tatar, go to www.johnjtatar.com.  To learn more about the Libertarian Party of Michigan, visit www.michiganlp.org.

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Link to the May Michigan Libertarian

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