Alabama Libertarian Party
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The Libertarian Party of Alabama (LPA) is the
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
affiliate of the
national Libertarian Party The National Libertarian Party () is a far-right Chilean political party led by Johannes Kaiser. It was founded by five libertarian members of the national conservative Republican Party in the Chamber of Deputies. Its legalisation process by the ...
(LP). It is headquartered in
Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is the List of municipalities in Alabama, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the List of United States cities by population, 100th-most populous ...
. Due to the high signature requirement to get onto the ballot and the requirement that a party run a statewide candidate that receives at least 20% in order to maintain ballot access the Libertarian Party of Alabama has rarely fielded candidates.


History

In 1976, the party began its first ballot access drive when it sent 50 volunteers to collect over 5,000 signatures from registered voters in order for its presidential candidate to appear on the ballot. In March the party sent over 5,000 signatures to the Secretary of State and it was later accepted giving
Roger MacBride Roger Lea MacBride (August 6, 1929 – March 5, 1995) was an American lawyer, political figure, and writer. After working as a lawyer early in his career, he inherited the estate of Laura Ingalls Wilder. He wrote several books in her ''Little Hou ...
ballot access in Alabama. In 1981, Steve Smith, the party coordinator, proposed at a meeting on election law reform that
none of these candidates "None of These Candidates" is a voting option in Nevada for all statewide and presidential election ballots. This option is listed along with the names of individuals running for the position and is often described as "none of the above". The op ...
should be added to Alabama ballots, but was rejected. On June 19, 1982, the party held its state convention in Montgomery, which was attended by the party's 1980 presidential candidate
Ed Clark Edward E. Clark (born May 4, 1930) is an American lawyer and politician who ran for governor of California in 1978, and for president of the United States as the nominee of the Libertarian Party in the 1980 presidential election. Background C ...
and twenty five people, to nominate candidates and to discuss a new state ballot access law that would require third-party candidates to collect a certain percentage of voters rather than a set amount. In 1983, multiple Libertarian candidates were denied ballot access due to the new requirements set by the ballot access law which increased the amount needed to gain ballot access from either receiving 10% in the previous general election to 20% or by collecting signatures from registered voters equal to the 1% of votes in the previous general election. The party made legal appeals to gain ballot access stating that they had gained ballot access under the previous law and that the current law couldn't be applied during the current election cycle, but their appeals were rejected. In 1991, former Governor
Fob James Forrest Hood "Fob" James Jr. (born September 15, 1934) is an American politician, civil engineer, entrepreneur, and former football player. He served as the 48th governor of Alabama, first as a Democrat from 1979–1983, and then as a Republ ...
addressed the party's state convention.
Nancy Lord Nancy Theresa Lord (February 8, 1952 – February 14, 2022) was an American attorney and medical researcher who was the vice-presidential candidate of the Libertarian Party in the 1992 presidential election, as the running-mate of Andre Marrou ...
, the party's vice presidential nominee, and
Larry Pratt Lawrence D. Pratt (born November 13, 1942) is the executive director emeritus of Gun Owners of America, a United States–based firearms lobbying group, and a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates. Early life Pratt was born in Ca ...
, president of the
Gun Owners of America Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a gun rights organization in the United States. It makes efforts to differentiate itself from the larger National Rifle Association (NRA) and has publicly criticized the NRA on multiple occasions for what it consid ...
, both spoke at the 1992 state convention. In 2000, after collecting over 60,000 signatures, the Libertarian Party of Alabama ran a small slate of candidates. Libertarian Candidate Sydney Al Smith garnered over 20% in a statewide race and in 2002, the Libertarian Party of Alabama was the first minor party to have achieved major party status in Alabama in over thirty years. In the next election cycle the Libertarian Party of Alabama ran 58 candidates ranging from governor to tax collector. Unable to garner over 20% in a statewide race, the Libertarian Party of Alabama lost its major party status and associated ballot access after 2002. Since 2002, the Libertarian Party of Alabama has not been able to collect the nearly 60,000 raw signatures that would be required to regain statewide ballot access, but have been able to get ballot access for their presidential candidates as independents. The party led efforts to defeat Amendment One, the tax increase plan proposed by Republican Governor
Bob Riley Robert Renfroe Riley (born October 3, 1944) is an American retired politician and businessman who served as the 52nd governor of Alabama from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he was the U.S. Hous ...
. Alabama Libertarians were credited by talk radio hos
Russ Fine
as "the leader in Internet activism" for their efforts in directing an online campaign against the tax plan. The Libertarian Party of Alabama hosted a meeting in
Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...
between many of the key people and organizations opposing the ballot measure. Key personalities from the Tennessee Tax Revolt, Inc. shared their experiences from recent tax battles in the neighboring state. In attendance were representatives from the
Eagle Forum Eagle Forum is a conservative advocacy group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972. Focused on social issues, it is socially conservative and describes itself as pro-family. Critics have described it as anti-feminist, an ...
, talk radio programs,
Citizens for a Sound Economy Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE) (1984–2004) was a conservative political group operating in the United States. It was established in 1984 by Charles and David Koch of Koch Industries. Ron Paul was appointed as the first chairman of the org ...
, the Libertarian Party and local businessman Stan Pate. The primary result of this meeting was a coordinated coalition activity geared toward defeating the ballot measure. While the Alabama Republican Party eventually offered a weak disapproval of Riley's tax plan, the Libertarian Party of Alabama was the only political party to offer active resistance to the proposed tax hike. The measure was rejected by voters on September 9, 2003, with 68 percent opposed to it. After gathering over 8,000 petitions, the party was granted ballot access in Jefferson County, the most populated county in Alabama. Currently the LPA is seeking candidates for this county and collecting signatures for surrounding counties. In 2019, the party filed a lawsuit against Secretary of State John Merrill for charging them $34,000 for a voter list while the Republican and Democratic parties are given the same list for free and on August 28 District Court Judge Emily C. Marks refused the state's request to dismiss the case. A split in the party occurred in 2025, With former state organizer for the
Mises Caucus The Libertarian Party Mises Caucus (LPMC) is a caucus within the Libertarian Party (United States), Libertarian Party in the United States that promotes paleolibertarianism, fusionism, as well as a more conservative version of American libertar ...
, Mike Shaner forming the '' Voluntaryist Party of Alabama'', Shaner stated that Alabama is an “
authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
nightmare” and the Libertarian Party is ''no longer capable of challenging the state’s
political establishment In sociology and in political science, the term the establishment describes the dominant social group, the elite who control a polity, an organization, or an institution. In the praxis of wealth and power, the Establishment usually is a self-s ...
''


Former officials

*Jimmy Blake – Birmingham City councilor (1993–2001)


Electoral performance


Presidential


See also

*
Political party strength in Alabama The following table displays, by color, the parties of elected officials in the U.S. state of Alabama from 1817 to the current year. As such, it may indicate the political party strength at any given time. The officers listed include: * Governor * ...


References


External links

* {{Libertarian Party (United States)
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
Political parties in Alabama