2016 Candidates
The Maryland Libertarian Party will be participating in the 2016 general election. We will be running candidates for federal and Baltimore city offices. The offices up for election in 2016:
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US Senate
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US House of Representatives (8)
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Baltimore City Mayor
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Baltimore City Comptroller
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Baltimore City Council President
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Baltimore City Council (14)
To be eligible to run for the US House, you must be 25 years old on the day of the election, and be a resident of the state that day. You do not have to live in the congressional district in which you are running. To run for the US Senate, you must be 30 years old on election day, and a resident of the state.
To run for Mayor, Comptroller, or City Council President, you must be 25 years old on election day, and have resided in the city for at least one year. To run for the City Council, you must be 21 on election day, and have lived in the district in which you are running for one year.
We currently have commitments for the US Senate race, two of the US House races, Mayor, and two of the City Council races. We also have several people seriously considering running in the other races. If you are interested in running, or just considering running, please contact me at your earliest convenience. I would be happy to discuss running for office with you.
Why run? And why run for office as a Libertarian?
Running for office as a Libertarian allows us to get our message out to the voters at the time when most people are paying attention to politics.
Running as a Libertarian forces the two establishment parties to acknowledge that we are on the ballot and running against them, that there is a party with candidates running on issues that the D’s and R’s give lip-service to, but rarely if ever live up to and implement.
By running for office, particularly at the local level, you may get elected, and be able to implement libertarian policies. The LP has approximately 150 elected officials in the US currently.
What am I asking of Maryland Libertarian Party candidates?
1) Get your name on the ballot. My goal is to have a full slate of candidates in the 2016 elections, especially for the federal offices. Having a Libertarian on the ballot shows voters that there are other choices. The MDLP has been running a significant amount of candidates for the last four general election cycles, and we are building name recognition.
2) Have a candidate website or Facebook page. If you need help with this, let me know, we’ll be able to assist you.
3) If you aren’t sure of an issue or issues in which to run on, we can help you. In my opinion, for federal office, the best two issues for our candidates in 2016 are to eliminate the federal income tax and return spending to Clinton-era levels, and end the War on Drugs. Neither of the two parties will touch these issues, and they are gaining more and more traction.
4) If you are hesitant about fundraising, I can help you learn how to ask for money for your campaign.
The MDLP will be nominating candidates later this year at state party Central Committee meetings, and at the state party convention next year. All Central Committee members will receive notice, and notice of the meetings will be posted on the website and the monthly messages. MDLP candidates have until July 1, 2016 to file a Declaration of Intent, and have until August 1, 2016 to submit the remaining documents and filing fee with the state Board of Elections.
If you have any questions about the nominating or filing process, contact me at the number below or my email address, email hidden; JavaScript is required.
Advocacy in the General Assembly
The General Assembly is in session until
April 14. We are posting updates on General Assembly legislation that may be of interest to Libertarians on the state party website on a regular basis:
https://lpmaryland.org/Staying Connected
Be sure to check out the Maryland LP and Young Libertarians of Maryland Facebook pages:
Not a member of the MDLP? Has your membership expired? Please join here or here; your much-needed funds go to ballot access, outreach, publishing the triennial newsletter, and supporting our candidates. If you prefer, I would be happy to mail you an order form.
All contributions are subject to the limitations and prohibitions of the Federal Election Campaign Act, as amended. Federal law requires to use our best efforts to collect and report the name, mailing address, occupation and name of employer of individuals whose contributions exceed $200 in a calendar year.
To unsubscribe from this email list, please send an email with the word “unsubscribe” in the subject line.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me with questions, comments, or complaints you may have.
Sincerely,
Bob Johnston
Chairman
MDLP
(443) 310-5373
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