Libertarian Party of Colorado

Libertarian Party of Colorado
Abbreviation	LPCO
Chairperson	Hannah Goodman[1]
Founded	December 11, 1971
Ideology	Libertarianism
Colorado Senate	0 / 35
Colorado House of Representatives	0 / 65
U.S. Senate (Colorado)	0 / 2
U.S. House of Representatives (Colorado)	0 / 8
Other elected officials	2 (June 2024)^[update][2]
Website
lpcolorado.org
Politics of United States Political parties Elections

The Libertarian Party of Colorado (LPCO) is the Colorado affiliate of the national Libertarian Party (LP). As of April 2023, elected Libertarians in Colorado include Keenesburg mayor Aron Lam and Craig city councilman Paul James.^[3]

History

The Libertarian Party was founded on December 11, 1971, in Colorado Springs.^[4]

In 1994, the party's name was changed from the Colorado Libertarian Party to the Libertarian Party of Colorado. This was done so that candidates could appear on the ballot as Libertarian rather than Colorado Libertarian.^[5]

The party became a recognized minor party in 1998 after legislation was passed changing the requirements to being at least 1,000 registered voters or 5% of the vote in a statewide election.^[6][7]

The party had statewide primaries during the 2010 election, the first third-party to do so in Colorado since the Progressive Party in 1916.^[8] It was the only third party in the United States to run candidates in a majority of state legislative districts during the 2012 election.^[9]

In 2016, the party became the second Libertarian affiliate, after the Alaska Libertarian Party, to have at least 1% of the voters registered in it. This qualified their candidate, Lily Tang Williams for the U.S. Senate election to appear in debates.^[10][11]

The party initially declined to give its ballot access for the 2024 presidential election to the national presidential ticket of Chase Oliver and Mike ter Maat^[12] and attempted to give their ballot line to independent candidates, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Nicole Shanahan, the following month.^[13] The press secretary of the national party submitted required paperwork recognizing the Oliver/ter Maat slate, which the Colorado Secretary of State accepted.^[14] Despite this, attached to the naming of Chase Oliver as the party's official candidacy, was a "partnership agreement" with RFK Jr's campaign.^[15]

On August 2, 2024, the LPC announced that they would begin publishing a new bi-monthly newsletter, The Clipboard, to report on news within both the state party and the broader libertarian party.^[15]

Elected officials

Doug Carlsten served on the Brighton, Colorado city council in the 1990s.^[16] Doug Anderson, a member of the party, was elected to the Denver election commission in 1987, and Lakewood city council in 2005, in nonpartisan elections.^[17] Bob Dempsey was elected the San Miguel County Coroner as a Libertarian.^[18]

Voter registration

Year	RV.	%	Change
1984	207	(0.02%)	[19]
1988	1,026	(0.05%)	[20]

See also

• List of state Libertarian Parties in the United States

References

1. "Leadership". Libertarian Party of Colorado. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
2. "Elected Officials". Retrieved June 1, 2024.
3. "Elected Officials". Libertarian Party of Colorado. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
4. Martin, Douglas (November 22, 2011). "David Nolan, 66, Is Dead; Started Libertarian Party". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 3, 2023.
5. Combs, Richard (June 1994). "Convention Changes Name, Board" (PDF). CLiPboard. p. 1.
6. "Libertarian Party gets new status, should fight new battles". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. May 5, 1998. p. 4A – via Newspapers.com.
7. "It's Official: We're a Party! Romer Signs HB-98-1110". Colorado Liberty. May 1998. p. 1.
8. "Colorado Libertarian Party Primary Results". Ballot Access News. August 11, 2010. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
9. "Colorado Libertarian Party Was Only Non-Major Party to Run Nominees for a Majority of Legislative Seats". Ballot Access News. January 13, 2013. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
10. "Colorado Libertarian Registration Exceeds 1%; First Time any Libertarian Registration That High in Any State, Except in Alaska". Ballot Access News. September 6, 2016. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
11. "In a first, Libertarian candidate in Colorado's U.S. Senate race qualifies for major debate". The Denver Post. September 6, 2016. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
12. Redpath, Bill (June 11, 2024). "Libertarian Party of Colorado Announces It Will Not Place LP Presidential Ticket on the Ballot in that State". Ballot Access News. Archived from the original on June 13, 2024.
13. Evans, Jordan (July 2, 2024). "Libertarian Party of Colorado Partners with Kennedy Campaign, Will Place Kennedy-Shanahan Ticket on Ballot". Independent Political Report. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
14. Kenney, Andrew (July 25, 2024). "RFK Jr. probably won't be the Libertarian nominee in Colorado, Chase Oliver will". Colorado Political Report. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
15. Phillies, George. "Colorado Libertarians Issue New Newsletter". Third Party Watch. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
16. "Colorado Election Results" (PDF). CLiPboard. December 1995. p. 7.
17. "Libertarian Wins City Council seat in Lakewood, Colorado". Ballot Access News. November 3, 2005. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
18. "Libertarian Coroner in Colorado Seeks His Eighth Term". Ballot Access News. April 6, 2010. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
19. "Registration deadline near". Windsor Beacon. August 9, 1984. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
20. "Voter registration sets state record". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. November 4, 1988. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• Libertarian Party of Colorado
• Libertarian Party of Colorado – via lpedia.org