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The Libertarian Party of New Brunswick is a provincial political party in the
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
province of
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
which adheres to the general principles of
libertarianism Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according t ...
to "significantly cut taxes and reduce the size of government". It was formed in the months prior to the
2024 New Brunswick general election The 2024 New Brunswick general election was held on October 21, 2024, where 49 members were elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick. It was formally called upon the dissolution of the 60th New Brunswick Legislature on September 19, 2 ...
, with party leader Keith Tays saying ""I don't expect to win any seats this early on just because we've had so little time to get the word out." The party advocates for
free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
growth, and "reducing the size and intrusiveness of government, cutting and eliminating taxes at every opportunity, and allowing peaceful, honest people to offer their goods and services without inappropriate interference from the government", specifically referencing a proposed provincial police force, a provincial referendum to determine the breadth of issues like abortion, school choice and self-defence. Leader Keith Tays indicated that many of the initial party members had also opposed lockdowns and mandates during Covid-19. The party identifies as neither left-wing nor right-wing, noting its mandate is to "take power away from government because it's not the role of government to interfere in people's lives and people's businesses...we're talking about cutting government in half". However, they have been described by
CBC News CBC News is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC ...
as being on the "
populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...
right" and by the ''
Telegraph-Journal The ''Telegraph-Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, owned by Postmedia Network. It serves as both a provincial daily and as a local newspaper for Saint John. The ''Telegraph-Journal'' is the only New ...
'' as being on the "political right".


2024 general election

In 2024, Libertarian Party fielded 18 candidates, winning 0.5% of the popular vote overall, behind the Liberals, Progressive Conservatives, Greens,
NDP NDP may stand for: Computing * Neighbor Discovery Protocol, an Internet protocol * Nortel Discovery Protocol, a layer two Internet protocol, also called SONMP * Nondeterministic programming, a type of computer language Government * National Dev ...
, and
People's Alliance People's Alliance may refer to: * People's Alliance ( ''Volksunie''), Belgian political party which split in 2001 into the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie and Spirit * People's Alliance (Bulgaria), a Bulgarian party from 1921 to 1923 * People's Alliance ( ...
, and placed last in each riding contested by the party. Individual candidates received from 0.6% to 1.9% of the vote in their constituencies. The party ran more candidates than the People's Alliance, which leader Keith Tays criticized as having failed to stand on principle and embraced centrism. The election guide for the
University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English language, English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universiti ...
student newspaper, ''The Baron'', described the Libertarian Party as "radically different...as they believe in a form of government that holds limited power, especially over one's wallet, body, and mind, meaning the government should hold the most power on a local level." In an editorial, the ''
Telegraph-Journal The ''Telegraph-Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, owned by Postmedia Network. It serves as both a provincial daily and as a local newspaper for Saint John. The ''Telegraph-Journal'' is the only New ...
'' daily newspaper welcomed the creation of the party prior to the election, while not endorsing it, calling it "a necessary balance on the political right" to the
social conservativism Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social instituti ...
of the Progressive Conservatives under Premier
Blaine Higgs Blaine Myron Higgs (born March 1, 1954) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 34th premier of New Brunswick from 2018 to 2024 and leader of the New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party) from 2016 to 2024. Higgs grad ...
.


Election results


References

{{Libertarian parties in Canada 2024 establishments in New Brunswick Libertarian parties in Canada Political parties established in 2024 Provincial political parties in New Brunswick Libertarianism in Canada