We’ve got good news and we’ve got bad news.
The bad news is the Libertarian Party of Ohio has lost ballot access… again. The November Presidential election did not provide the votes needed for Libertarians to retain our status as a minor party. The Ohio Secretary of State released guidance regarding our ballot access in response to a Libertarian Candidate in Hamilton County that does not favor us.
What does this mean? Well, we’re back on the treadmill. We will need to collect ballot access petition signatures again to seek recognition for Minor Party Status. Based on the math we will need to collect 59,742 valid signatures from valid Ohio voters, at minimum, and with past experience on the matter, the more realistic number is over 100,000 signatures.
The good news is our Libertarian Party of Ohio Executive Committee has risen to the challenge and already formed a new Ballot Access Committee and produced a valid “Petition to Form a Minor Political Party”. This is the critical first step in our next adventure.
The better news is your Franklin County Libertarians have a plan. Over the past 4 years we have looked at how the petition process works in Ohio, how it works digitally in other states, and how we can take advantage of social media, outreach platforms and our amazing volunteers to facilitate and accelerate the laborious process of collecting and validating so many petitions.
Hint, we won’t be standing in front of BMV’s and libraries.
We can’t share our entire plan with you just yet, the FCLP Executive Committee has approved a framework to move forward and we will have more to share soon.
We are very excited about the opportunities this challenge provides, not just for Libertarians, but all issues and candidates that have burdensome petitioning requirements.
We’ll be in touch when we’re ready to share and appreciate all the hard work and dedication from our incredible volunteers. We are working to live up to your expectations and provide the best tools to get this important work done.
May Fortune Favor the Bold
Michael Sweeney
At Large, Executive Committee
Franklin County Libertarians