Libertarians Select Candidates for November

PRESS RELEASE – for immediate issue- May 19, 2016

Contact:
Bill Gelineau, Chair
Libertarian Party of Michigan
616.723.2776  chair@michiganlp.org

At their state convention in Lansing last weekend the Libertarian Party of Michigan selected their candidates for local, state and federal offices, other than the president and vice-president candidates who will be nominated at the national convention in Orlando, Florida at the end of May.

The convention was well attended and featured appearances by some of the top Libertarian presidential candidates, some of whom took part in a forum hosted by political correspondent and former legislator Bill Ballenger, which followed a banquet at the Lansing Radisson.

All told, Libertarians filed paperwork for over 70 candidates in state and national races, with additional office-seekers in local and county races.

With candidates in 13 of the 14 Congressional districts, they continue to uphold their status as the largest, most active party other than Democrats and Republicans.

Also of note was the nomination of former Republican state representative and successful national businessman Lorence Wenke, who will be running in Michigan’s Congressional District 6.

The Libertarian party was formed in 1971, and has fielded a presidential candidate in every election since. The Michigan affiliate formed in 1973, and the party expects its presidential nominee to be on the ballot in all fifty states again. It is the only third party to field a candidate in all fifty states in consecutive presidential races, and has garnered a lot of press attention recently. Dissatisfaction with other candidates has focused attention on the leading Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, who is the former two-term governor of New Mexico.

“We look forward to this election”, said Bill Gelineau, the state party chair. “It has the potential to bring major party status for the party in Michigan if our top candidate reaches the 5% threshold. Polls have shown people are very disappointed with the way our government is being run on the state and national level. The same tired rhetoric and poor results from both major parties have driven more people to identify themselves as independent. We hope voters will see Libertarians as good alternatives, with common sense solutions to government problems.”

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