Libertarian Party of Alabama - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Libertarian Party of Alabama is the Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

affiliate of the Libertarian Party

Libertarian Party (United States)

The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...

. Former chairs include Stephen Gordon

Stephen Gordon

Stephen Gordon, Steven Gordon or Steve Gordon is the name of:*Stephen Paul Gordon , Security Specialist, class of 1977*Stephen J. Gordon , English chess grandmaster*Stephen P...

, Mark Bodenhausen, Mark Thornton

Mark Thornton

Mark Thornton is an American economist of the Austrian School. Thornton has been described by the Advocates for Self-Government as "one of America's experts on the economics of illegal drugs." Thornton has written extensively on that topic, as well as on the economics of the American Civil War,...

, and former Birmingham City Councilman Dr. Jimmy Blake.

The Libertarian Party of Alabama (LPA) led efforts to defeat Amendment One, the tax increase plan proposed by Republican Governor Bob Riley

Bob Riley (Alabama)

Robert Renfroe "Bob" Riley is an American politician in the Republican Party. He was the 52nd Governor of Alabama, first elected in 2002, and re-elected in 2006.-Early life:...

. Alabama Libertarians were credited by talk radio host Russ Fine as a "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, Alabama

Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...

between many of the key people and organizations opposing the ballot measure. Key personalities from the Tennessee Tax Revolt

Tennessee Tax Revolt

Tennessee Tax Revolt is a nonpartisan grassroots political organization which grew out of efforts during the second administration of former governor of Tennessee Don Sundquist to enact a state income tax.-Public protests:...

shared their experiences from recent tax battles in the neighboring state. In attendance were representatives from the Eagle Forum

Eagle Forum

Eagle Forum is a conservative interest group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. The Eagle Forum has been primarily focused on social issues; it describes...

, talk radio programs, Citizens for a Sound Economy

Citizens for a Sound Economy

Citizens for a Sound Economy was a conservative political group operating in the United States, whose self-described mission was "to fight for less government, lower taxes, and less regulation." In 2004, Citizens for a Sound Economy split into two new organizations, with Citizens for a Sound...

, 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.

The unofficial motto of the Libertarian Party of Alabama comes from the Constitution of Alabama, and it reads: "The sole object and only legitimate end of government is to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property, and when the government assumes other functions, it is usurpation and oppression."

The Libertarian Party of Alabama lost its major party status and associated ballot access after 2002. In order to retain ballot access, a state-wide candidate of the Libertarian Party of Alabama needed to get 20% of the vote.

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 state wide ballot access. In 2004 they succeeded in putting Presidential Candidate Michael Badnarik on the ballot as an Independent and in 2008 Presidential Candidate Bob Barr was also successfully put on the Alabama ballot as an Independent. The Party made headlines in 2006 when Loretta Nall, their write-in-candidate for governor of Alabama, campaigned on a small government and greater personal freedoms platform.

Due to Alabama State ballot access restrictions and the costs involved in overcoming these barriers, the LPA had no candidates running in any of the 2010 election races.

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