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2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries

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2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries
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The 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries and caucuses were a series of electoral contests to indicate non-binding preferences for the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate in the 2020 United States presidential election. These differed from the Republican or Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses in that they do not appoint delegates to represent a candidate at the party's convention to select the party's presidential nominee.

Quick facts Non-binding preferential vote, Candidate ...

The party's nominee was subsequently chosen directly by registered delegates at the 2020 Libertarian National Convention, held through an online convention from May 22 to May 24.[2] Jo Jorgensen was chosen as the party's presidential nominee, becoming the first woman to receive the Libertarian nomination, after four rounds of voting.[3][4] Spike Cohen was nominated for vice president.[5]

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Background

The 2020 United States presidential election was the thirteenth contested presidential election in which the Libertarian Party participated. The 2016 election saw the highest vote total and percentage of votes for a Libertarian presidential ticket ever, with former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson and his running mate, former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld, receiving over four million votes and 3.3% of the total vote.[6]

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Candidates

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Major candidates have been invited to participate in at least two Libertarian Party-sponsored debates or have received substantial independent media coverage.

Nominee

More information Candidate, Born ...

Eliminated in convention balloting

More information Candidate, Born ...

Withdrew during the primaries

More information Candidate, Born ...

Withdrew before the primaries

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Formed exploratory committee but did not run

More information Candidate, Born ...

Declined to be candidates

These individuals have been the subject of presidential speculation, but have publicly denied or recanted interest in running for president.

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Timeline of the race

2017

2018

  • January 18: Adam Kokesh officially launches his campaign at an event in Texas, having already announced his intention to run for president during a jailhouse interview in 2013.[89] On the day of his announcement, Kokesh was stopped twice by Texas state troopers, and placed under arrest and charged with possession of a controlled substance and tampering with evidence.[90]
  • May 28: Perennial candidate and performance artist Vermin Supreme files to run.[12]
  • June 3: Contrary to an assertion he made at the 2016 convention, John McAfee announces via Twitter that he would run for president again in 2020, either with the Libertarian Party or under the banner of a party of his own creation.[91]
  • July 3: Former Vice Chair of the Libertarian National Committee, Arvin Vohra announces his candidacy, after an unsuccessful bid for re-election to his position as vice chair.[35]
  • August 26: Chair of the Horry County Libertarian party and 2016 presidential candidate Keenan Dunham files to run.[30]
  • October 19: After having been asked during a Q&A session a few days prior if he would be interested in running for president as a Libertarian, Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne indicates that he "almost definitely" was not going to run for president in 2020.[66]
  • December 12: Vice chair of the L.P. Radical Caucus Kim Ruff expresses interest in a run.[92][93]

2019

  • January 3: Biomedical researcher and candidate for the party's 2008 presidential nomination Mary Ruwart confirmed on Twitter that she was not planning on seeking the nomination on 2020 in order to focus on writing.[76]
  • January 11: Zoltan Istvan announced via his website that he had left the Libertarian Party some time before this date, and was no longer seeking its presidential nomination in 2020.[94]
  • January 20: At-the-time Republican representative Justin Amash warns the Libertarian Party against nominating a "squishy Republican" at LibertyCon, a comment widely seen as directed at 2016 vice-presidential nominee and presumptive frontrunner Bill Weld.[86]
  • January 21: Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, who had been suggested as a Libertarian candidate, makes clear that any presidential run by him would be as an independent.[95][96][97]
  • January 22: McAfee announces via Twitter that he would be continuing his campaign "in exile", following reports that he, his wife, and four of his campaign staff were being indicted for tax-related felonies by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). McAfee indicated that he was in "international waters", and had previously tweeted that he was on his way to Venezuela.[98] The IRS has not commented on the alleged indictments.[99]
  • January 23: McAfee confirmed on Twitter that he had docked in the Bahamas, where he would remain for the foreseeable future.[100]
  • January 30: Podcaster and software engineer Dan Behrman files to run.[17]
  • February 5: Weld, who had served as Gary Johnson's running mate in 2016, is the subject of rumours that he had left the Libertarian Party and rejoined the Republican Party to challenge Donald Trump in the Republican primary.[101]
  • February 15:
    • Weld confirmed that he had left the Libertarian Party on February 15 by announcing the formation of an exploratory committee for the Republican nomination.[102] Weld officially launched his campaign for the Republican nomination on April 15.[103]
    • Justin Amash declines to rule out running for the Libertarian nomination.[104]
  • April 1: Software engineer and former naval officer Sam Robb files to run.[20]
  • April 22: Larry Sharpe, who had been a candidate for vice president in 2016 and the nominee for Governor of New York in 2018, told The Niagara Gazette that he was unlikely to run for office in 2020, and was instead looking at running for Governor again in 2022.[105]
  • May 3: Souraya Faas files to run.
  • May 10: Former U.S. Coast Guard officer Ken Armstrong announces his candidacy.[106][107]
  • May 18: Congressman Justin Amash broke ranks with the Republican Party and became the first Republican in all of Congress to call for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.[108] In an interview with Salon, Libertarian National Committee chairman Nicholas Sarwark concurred with Amash's conclusions, saying, "of all the members of Congress, his [Amash] positions seem to most closely match those of the Libertarian Party.", fuelling speculations about a possible bid by Amash for the Libertarian nomination[109][110] On May 22, Sharpe reported receiving two calls from "people close to Amash" inquiring about the Libertarian Party.[111]
  • May 23: Entrepreneur Erik Gerhardt files to run.[27]
  • June 30: New Hampshire state representative Max Abramson announces his candidacy for the Libertarian nomination.[112]
  • July 4: Amash announces via an op-ed in The Washington Post that he had left the Republican Party, becoming an independent.[113]
  • August 22: Former Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee, who announced he had joined the Libertarian Party in a Boston Globe op-ed published in July, expressed interest in making another bid for the presidency, this time as a Libertarian.[114][115]
  • October 29: Founder and president of the Future of Freedom Foundation Jacob Hornberger filed to seek the Libertarian nomination for president, announcing his candidacy days later.
  • November 2: At the South Carolina Libertarian Party convention, 1996 vice presidential nominee Jo Jorgensen announces her candidacy seeking the nomination for president. Jorgensen participated in the subsequent presidential debate held off the convention site.[11]
  • December 20: Podcaster and satirist Mark Whitney announces his campaign.[46]

2020

  • January 5: Former Governor and Senator Lincoln Chafee files to run.[48]
  • January 11:
    • Vermin Supreme wins the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire's internally-held and funded presidential preference primary.[116]
    • Kim Ruff suspends her campaign.[117]
  • January 27: 2010 Georgia gubernatorial nominee John Monds files to run.[38][39]
  • February 8: Jacob Hornberger wins the Libertarian Party of Iowa's internally-held and funded presidential preference caucus.[118]
  • February 25: Jacob Hornberger wins the Libertarian Party of Minnesota's internally-held presidential preference caucus.[119]
  • March 3;
  • March 4: John McAfee suspends his presidential campaign and announces his candidacy for the Libertarian vice-presidential nomination, endorsing Vermin Supreme for president.[120][122]
  • March 5: McAfee resumes his presidential campaign.[123]
  • March 10: Jacob Hornberger wins the unopposed Missouri primary.[124]
  • April 5: Lincoln Chafee suspends his campaign.[49]
  • April 11: Hornberger wins the Ohio caucus.[125]
  • April 13: Judge Jim Gray announces his candidacy, with Larry Sharpe as his running mate.[126]
  • April 24: Mark Whitney suspends his campaign and endorses Gray.[47]
  • April 26: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the JW Marriott Downtown Austin cancels all reservations for the 2020 Libertarian National Convention.[127]
  • April 28;
    • Hornberger wins the Connecticut primary.[128]
    • Justin Amash opens a presidential exploratory committee for the Libertarian nomination.[63]
  • April 29: Ken Armstrong announces that he will withdraw from the presidential race and instead seek the nomination for vice president, following Amash's declaration for the Presidential nomination.[40]
  • May 9: The Libertarian Party of Kentucky sponsors the 5th in a series of televised debates held by the state party, featuring the top four vote-getting candidates from previous debates, Hornberger, Supreme, Jorgensen, and Jim Gray, plus Justin Amash.[129]
  • May 11: Ken Armstrong endorses Amash.[41]
  • May 12: Jo Jorgensen wins the Nebraska primary with 28% of the vote.[130]
  • May 16: Despite forming an exploratory committee, Justin Amash announces that he will not seek the 2020 presidential nomination.[64]
  • May 22: The 2020 Libertarian National Convention begins online, set to run digitally from May 22–24.
  • May 23;
    • In the nominating round, Blevins, Vohra, McAfee, Dunham, Gerhardt, Faas, Robb, and Behrman are eliminated. Vohra endorses Kokesh, Robb endorses Jorgensen, and Faas and Behrman endorse Supreme. (Behrman nevertheless announces he will continue his presidential run as an independent.)
    • In subsequent rounds, Kokesh, Gray, Monds, Supreme, and Hornberger are eliminated. All of them subsequently endorse Jorgensen.
    • The Libertarian Party officially nominates Jo Jorgensen as its presidential candidate, making her the party's first female presidential nominee.
  • May 24: The Libertarian Party nominates Spike Cohen as its vice presidential nominee.

Overview

Active campaign
Exploratory committee
Withdrawn candidate
Midterm elections
New Hampshire primary
Super Tuesday
COVID-19 pandemic
national emergency
declaration
Libertarian convention
Final primary
General election
Zoltan IstvanMax Abramson#2020 presidential campaignLincoln Chafee 2020 presidential campaignJustin Amash#2020 presidential exploratory committeeJohn McAfee 2020 presidential campaignAdam Kokesh#2020 presidential campaignJim Gray (jurist)#2020 presidential campaignJohn MondsVermin Supreme 2020 presidential campaignJo Jorgensen#2020 presidential campaign
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Endorsements

Main article: List of Jo Jorgensen 2020 presidential campaign endorsements
Jim Gray
Federal legislators
Statewide officials
Municipal officials
  • Jeff Hewitt, member of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors (Previously endorsed Whitney)[132]
Jacob Hornberger
Party officials
Individuals
Adam Kokesh
Federal legislators
Party officials
Vermin Supreme
State legislators
Individuals
Justin Amash
State legislators
Individuals
Lincoln Chafee
Individuals
  • Steve Kerbel, businessman, author, and candidate for President in 2016[147]
  • James P. Gray, Former presiding judge for the Superior Court of Orange County, California, Nominee for Vice-President in 2012 (Later ran for President)[16]
Kim Ruff
State legislators
Mark Whitney
Municipal officials
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Primaries and caucuses

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The Libertarian Party participated in presidential primaries in numerous states.[149]

Other primaries and caucuses

  • Cancellations: Arizona[163]

Ballot access

More information State/ Territory, Date ...

Candidates listed in italics have suspended their campaigns.

  1. Erik Gerhardt, Arlen Lawson Wright
  2. Sorinne Ardeleanu, Souraya Faas, Steve Richey
  3. Souraya Faas, Erik Gerhardt, Steve Richey
  4. Kenneth Blevins, Souraya Faas, Erik Gerhardt, Jedi Hill, James Ogle, Steve Richey
  5. Steve Richey
  6. Brian Ellison, Erik Gerhardt, James Ogle, Jedediah Hill, John Monds, Kenneth Blevins, Louis Vanacore, Phil Gray, Rhett Smith, Sorinne Ardeleanu, Steve Richey
  7. Sorinne Ardeleanu, John Monds, James Ogle
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Results

Main article: Results of the 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries
More information Date, Contest ...
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Debates and forums

Schedule

Thumb
L1Issaquah
L1
Issaquah
L2Bay City
L2
Bay City
L3Colorado Springs
L3
Colorado Springs
L4Tampa
L4
Tampa
L5Toledo
L5
Toledo
L6Somerville
L6
Somerville
L7Florence
L7
Florence
L8Olean
L8
Olean
L9Concord
L9
Concord
L10Douglasville
L10
Douglasville
L11Culver City
L11
Culver City
L12Orlando
L12
Orlando
L13Birmingham
L13
Birmingham
L14Philadelphia

L14
Philadelphia
L15East Peoria
L15
East Peoria
L18McAllen
L18
McAllen
L19Austin
L19
Austin
Sites of the Libertarian Party presidential debates.
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Debates

More information Date, Place ...

Forums

More information Date, Place ...
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Primary election polling

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National polling of delegates to the Convention

Both of these polls were conducted using ranked choice voting, progression down the table indicates later rounds of voting as the candidate with the lowest total is eliminated.

More information Poll source, Sample size ...
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Campaign finance

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This is an overview of the money used by each campaign as it is reported to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and released on October 15, 2019. Totals raised include loans from the candidate and transfers from other campaign committees. Some of the Libertarian candidates have not filed with the FEC, and financial data for those candidates are therefore not available.

  Withdrawn candidate
More information Candidate, Total raised ...

See also

National Conventions

Presidential primaries

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Notes

    1. The primaries were non-binding. Despite not receiving a plurality of the popular vote and carrying only Nebraska (the New Mexico primary took place after the convention), Jorgensen was able to secure a majority of delegate votes at the convention, and thus the nomination.
    2. Cohen was not personally chosen by Jorgensen, but was nominated separately by party delegates
    3. Candidate did not appear on any ballots.
    4. This individual is not a Libertarian Party member, but has been the subject of speculation and/or expressed interest in running under this party.
    5. Primary/caucus is held internally by the state party and not a state sanctioned election.
    6. In the below table, blank cells indicate the candidate was not a ballot option or approved write-in candidate. Shaded cells indicate withdrawn candidates.
    7. Mark Whitney: 6 (4.3%), Arvin Vohra: 6 (4.3%), Lincoln Chafee: 4 (2.9%), Justin Amash: 3 (2.1%), Keenan Dunham: 2 (1.4%), "Straw Poll": 1 (0.7%), Joe Bishop-Henchman: 1 (0.7%), Thomas Knapp: 1 (0.7%), Nicholas Sarwark: 1 (0.7%)
    8. Lincoln Chafee: 36 (12.8%), John McAfee: 10 (3.7%), Write-in: 8 (2.9%), Mark Whitney: 4 (1.4%), Arvin Vohra: 3 (1.1%), Keenan Dunham: 2 (0.7%), Souraya Faas: 2 (0.7%), Benjamin Leder: 1 (0.4%), John Monds: 1 (0.4%)
    9. The New Mexico primary was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was therefore held after Jo Jorgensen received the Libertarian Party nomination on May 23.[187][188]
    10. Chafee addressed the convention before the debate.
    11. Ranked Choice Voting
    12. Without Amash
    13. None of the Above with 3.7%; Vohra with 2.3%; Behrman with 1.4%; Robb with 0.9%; Brian Ellison with no votes
    14. No votes exhausted
    15. None of the Above with 3.7%; Vohra with 2.3%; Behrman with 1.4%; Robb with 0.9%
    16. None of the Above with 3.7%; Vohra with 2.3%; Behrman with 1.4%
    17. None of the Above with 3.7%; Vohra with 2.6%
    18. None of the Above with 3.7%
    19. 6 votes exhausted
    20. 12 votes exhausted
    21. 13 votes exhausted
    22. 29 votes exhausted
    23. 46 votes exhausted
    24. Vohra with 2.3%; None of the Above with 1.4%; Behra and Robb with 0.9%; Brian Ellison with no votes
    25. Vohra with 2.3%; None of the Above with 1.4%; Behra and Robb with 0.9%
    26. Vohra with 2.3%; None of the Above with 1.4%; Robb with 1.2%
    27. Vohra with 2.3%; None of the Above with 1.4%
    28. Vohra with 2.3%
    29. 3 votes exhausted
    30. 5 votes exhausted
    31. 40 votes exhausted
    32. Armstrong's most recent financial report was for the period ending December 31, 2019.
    33. Ruff's most recent financial report was for the period ending September 30, 2019.
    34. Supreme's most recent financial report was for the period ending September 30, 2019.
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    References

    External links

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