Libertarian Party off to a strong start for 2008 races

Out-files and out-raises all national third parties

Quick Quotes:Shane Cory, Executive Director, Libertarian Party

• "We're coming off a 28 percent membership increase, and we're out-raising all other national third parties combined."

• "The Libertarian Party has done very well at the local level by getting many of our candidates elected and creating more competition in election cycles. The major two-parties can no longer ignore the impact of libertarians on politics."Wes Benedict, Executive Director, Libertarian Party of Texas

• "I think we had to work harder to get 210 candidates for the 2008 elections. Many Texas Libertarians are focused on Ron Paul's campaign for president."

Washington, D.C. - Following a successful off-year election, where approximately one in five Libertarians won the races in which they competed, the Libertarian Party looks to make a strong impact in the 2008 election. "We finished strong in 2007, and we look to do well in 2008," says Shane Cory, executive director of the Libertarian Party.

"We're coming off a 28 percent membership increase, and we're out-raising all other national third parties combined," says Cory. "You can expect big things from the Libertarian Party in 2008."

Current Federal Election Commission reports indicate that the Libertarian Party out-fundraised all national third parties combined in 2007. Additionally, the Libertarian Party expects to be on the 2008 ballot in at least 48 states--more than any other third party.

The Libertarian Party of Texas, in the first state in the nation to file candidates, submitted 210 candidates for the 2008 election. For the first time, Libertarian candidates filed for every statewide race. Libertarians filed for 30 of the 32 U.S. House seats, 12 of the 15 Texas Senate seats (a record 80 percent), 102 of the 150 Texas House seats (a record 68 percent), and five of the seven State Board of Education seats (a record 71 percent)."In 2006, 218 candidates filed with the Libertarian Party of Texas," says Libertarian Party of Texas Executive Director Wes Benedict.

"I think we had to work harder to get 210 candidates for the 2008 elections. Many Texas Libertarians are focused on Ron Paul's campaign for president."

"What's remarkable about the slate of candidates in Texas is that they all come during the time that Ron Paul, a libertarian Congressman from Texas, is running for President as a Republican," says Sean Haugh, the Libertarian Party political director.

"All the libertarians who switched their voter registration to Republican in order to vote for Paul in the primary made themselves ineligible to run as a Libertarian in the 2008 election."

Recent surges in Libertarian Party membership and the success of Ron Paul's campaign indicate a rise of libertarian philosophy among American voters. The Libertarian Party expects this so-called "libertarian rising" to translate into higher vote totals, which will elect more candidates and determine the outcome of more races across the nation.The Libertarian Party ran more than 650 candidates in 2006 elections, and garnered more than 13.4 million votes for candidates around the nation.

"We're hoping Texas sets the standard that the rest of our state affiliates will follow," says Cory. "The Libertarian Party has done very well at the local level by getting many of our candidates elected and creating more competition in election cycles. The major two parties can no longer ignore the impact of libertarians on politics.

"The Libertarian Party is America's third largest political party, founded in 1971 as an alternative to the two main political parties. You can find more information on the Libertarian Party by visiting www.lp.org. The Libertarian Party proudly stands for smaller government, lower taxes and more freedom.