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 |  Subject: Libertarian Party forms new Mesa chapter  Tue Jan 19, 2021 5:13 am | |
| Libertarians aren’t new to Mesa County, but their chapter is.
Last week, a group of local Libertarians created their own branch to the Colorado Libertarian Party.
“After the last several years of watching two major parties oppose each other just to oppose each other, without regard to the freedom of the American people, I decided to seek out a better option,” said Whitewater resident Josh Drews. “The Libertarian Party is the only one that actually believes that people should be free to make the right decisions for themselves.”
While Libertarians make up the third largest party in Mesa County and the state, their numbers are far lower compared to the Republican and Democratic parties.
Statewide, both parties are outnumbered by unaffiliated voters, though the GOP still holds a slight lead over unaffiliateds in the county.
According to voter registration rolls maintained by the Secretary of State’s Office, as of the end of December there were 1,208 registered Libertarians in the county, 42,223 in all of Colorado.
That compared to 18,053 Democrats in the county (1.1 million statewide), 43,144 Republicans (1 million statewide) and 42,177 unaffiliated voters (1.5 million statewide).
Because of those low numbers, Libertarian candidates rarely fare well in general elections, usually earning only a few percentage points. Additionally, few ever bother to collect campaign dollars to help get themselves elected, or do much in the way of campaigning, even creating their own websites.
John Ryan Keil, who ran for the 3rd Congressional District in last year’s general election for example, didn’t create a campaign finance account with the Federal Election Commission because he raised no money.
Still, he received 10,298 votes, twice as many registered Libertarians in the district.
In that same election, Marc Montoni pulled in nearly 4% of the vote for Mesa County commissioner in District 3, which Republican Janet Rowland handily won with more than 64%. Montoni collected no campaign donations in that race either.
The last time a Libertarian fared well here was back in 2012, when Libertarian Tim Menger won 41% of the vote for a seat in the Colorado Legislature in House District 54, losing to scandal-plagued Republican Jared Wright of Fruita, who ended up serving only one two-year term.
Had he won, Menger would have been the first Libertarian to serve in the Legislature, but he, too, collected no donations for his campaign.
Regardless, local Libertarians are hopeful that by creating their own chapter, the recent events in Washington, D.C., and the disarray of politics in general will help boost their ranks.
“With all the events happening at the national level that left many feeling like all they could do was watch, becoming part of a local Libertarian Party startup where people can take action and do something impacting felt like the most timely and useful step to take,” said JB Phillips, a Grand Junction resident who was chosen to be the first president of the Mesa County Libertarian Party.
“If you’re done with the Democratic/Republican dumpster fires that have been scalding the nation since forever, but have become horrid sideshows of how not to behave, then consider re-registering as a Libertarian and come join us.”
The the new group is seeking to recruit precinct captains. Once that’s done in as many precincts as possible, they will vote on empaneling a new board.
Initially founded in 1971, the party is a strong proponent of any government interference in personal, family and business decisions, believing that all Americans should be free to live their lives unfettered by government edicts as long as they do no harm to others.
“I’ve believed in Libertarian principles for years, but never thought the party had enough traction to put my support behind it,” said Orchard Mesa resident Robert Ballard, who will serve as party treasurer. “I finally realized that the only way the Libertarian Party will ever gain traction is if passionate voters make the switch.”
.https://www.gjsentinel.com/news/western_colorado/libertarian-party-forms-new-mesa-chapter/article_60e3f172-59ca-11eb-b0fe-1fc7889fcda9.html
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