Libertarian Party of California explained

Libertarian Party of California
Chairman:	Adrian Malagon
Membership Year:	Feb 2024
Membership:	240,618^[1]
Headquarters:	428 J Street, Suite 400 Sacramento, CA 95814^[2]
Country:	United States
Abbreviation:	LPCA
Seats1 Title:	Senate
Seats2 Title:	House of Representatives
Seats3 Title:	U.S. Senate
Seats4 Title:	U.S. House of Representatives
Seats5 Title:	Statewide Executive Offices
Seats6 Title:	Elected officials
Seats6:	6
Footnotes:	California Department of Education is a nonpartisan state executive position.

The Libertarian Party of California (LPC) is the California affiliate of the national Libertarian Party (LP). The party chairman is Adrian Malagon, and is based in Sacramento, California, in Sacramento County.^[3] As of 2016 Libertarians represent approximately 0.7% of the state's registered voters.^[4]

History

In 1972 the party considered suing county clerks in Placer and Butte counties for refusing to allow voters to register as Libertarians.^[5] In 1978 Ed Clark, who had been the affiliate's chairman from 1973 to 1974 and later the national presidential candidate in 1980, ran as an independent for governor of California to gain party recognition and received over five percent.^[6] However, the Secretary of State ruled that the two percent requirement was for retaining party recognition and not gaining party recognition and that since Clark had run as an independent and not a Libertarian it would not count either way.^[7] The party filed a lawsuit against the decision, but it was first dismissed then ruled against on appeal. The Libertarian Party of California has hosted the Libertarian National Convention in 1977, 1979, 1980, and in 2000.

Participation of "independent" voters

Since January 2001, California has had a "modified" closed primary system in which political parties can determine whether or not to allow voters who are not affiliated with any party (i.e. "independent") to participate in the party's primary. The passage of Proposition 14 limited this "modified" closed primary system to primaries for President of the United States, starting with the 2012 primaries. For the first 15 years of the "modified" closed primary system, the California Libertarian Party did not allow "independent" voters to vote in Libertarian primaries. But beginning with the 2016 Libertarian Party presidential primaries, the California Libertarian Party has allowed "independent" voters to vote in its presidential primaries.^[8]

Current elected officials

All current Libertarian Party elected officials are in "nonpartisan" elected offices, meaning that the candidates' partisan affiliation is not listed on the ballot.

Bob Karwin – Menifee City Council District 1.
Brian Holtz – Purisima Hills Water District board member^[9] ^[10]
John Harrington – San Gabriel city councilor^[11]
Kate O'Brien – Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District board member^[12]
Nils Nehrenheim – Redondo Beach City Council District 1.
Ryan Kelley – Imperial County Supervisor, District 4.

Notable former elected officials

Jeff Hewitt – District 5 Riverside County Supervisor board member (2019–2023)^[13] and former Calimesa city councilmember and Mayor^[14]
Art Olivier – Bellflower city councilor and mayor (1994–1997; 1998–1999)

Electoral performance

Presidential nominee	Votes	Change
John Hospers (write-in)	980 (0.1%)
	56,388 (0.7%)	0.7%
	148,434 (1.7%)	1.0%
	49,951 (0.5%)	1.2%
	70,105 (0.7%)	0.2%
	48,139 (0.4%)	0.3%
	73,600 (0.7%)	0.3%
	45,520 (0.4%)	0.3%
	50,165 (0.4%)	0.0%
	67,582 (0.5%)	0.1%
	143,221 (1.1%)	0.6%
	478,500 (3.4%)	2.3%
	187,895 (1.1%)	2.3%
	65,296 (0.4%)	0.6%

Senate Class I

Senate nominee	Votes	Change
Joseph Fuhrig	107,720 (1.4%)
Jack Dean	79,997 (0.8%)	0.6%
Richard Benjamin Boddie	247,799 (2.3%)	1.5%
Richard Benjamin Boddie	179,100 (2.1%)	0.2%
Gail Lightfoot	187,718 (1.8%)	0.3%
Michael S. Metti	133,851 (1.6%)	0.2%
Gail Lightfoot	101,648 (2.1%)	0.5%
Derrick Michael Reid	59,999 (0.9%)	1.2%

Senate Class III

Senate nominee	Votes	Change
	202,481 (2.4%)
Breck McKinley	66,261 (0.9%)	1.5%
June R. Genis	235,919 (2.2%)	1.3%
Ted Brown	93,926 (1.1%)	1.1%
	216,522 (1.8%)	0.7%
Gail Lightfoot	175,235 (1.8%)	0.1%
	141,105 (1.9%)	0.1%

Gubernatorial

Year	Gubernatorial nominee	Votes	Change
		377,960 (5.5%)	0.6%
	Dan P. Dougherty	81,076 (1.0%)	4.4%
	Joseph Fuhrig	52,628 (0.7%)	0.3%
	Dennis Thompson	145,628 (1.9%)	1.2%
	Richard Rider	149,281 (1.7%)	0.2%
		73,845 (0.9%)	0.8%
	Gary David Copeland	161,203 (2.2%)	1.3%
	Ned Roscoe Ken Hamidi John Hickey	5,887 (0.1%)	2.1%
		114,329 (1.3%)	1.3%
	Dale Ogden	150,898 (1.5%)	0.2%
	None	None	1.5%
	Zoltan Istvan Nickolas Wildstar	26,028 (0.4%)	0.4%
2021	Jeff Hewitt	50,028 (0.7%)	0.3%

Lieutenant Gubernatorial

Lieutenant nominee	Votes	Change
Bob New	180,896 (2.1%)
Thomas Tryon	109,888 (1.4%)	0.8%
Pat Wright	104,920 (1.4%)	0.1%
Lynnette Shaw	142,851 (1.7%)	0.2%
Pamela Brown	574,640 (5.9%)	4.2%
None	None	5.9%
Tim Ferreira	99,949 (1.5%)	1.5%

Attorney General

Attorney General nominee	Votes	Change
Richard N. Burns	274,335 (3.3%)
Joseph S. Farina	149,430 (1.9%)	1.5%
Ed Kuwatch	127,152 (1.8%)	0.1%
Kenneth Weissman	177,469 (2.1%)	0.3%
Timothy J. Hannan	246,583 (2.6%)	0.5%
Jonathan Jaech	99,056 (2.4%)	0.1%
None	None	2.4%

Secretary of State

Secretary of State nominee	Votes	Change
Peggy Christensen	248,748 (3.0%)
Gail Lightfoot	216,853 (2.7%)	0.3%
Gail Lightfoot	204,527 (2.8%)	0.1%
Gail Lightfoot	171,393 (2.0%)	0.8%
	157,974 (2.2%)	0.2%
None	None	2.2%
Gail Lightfoot	155,879 (2.4%)	2.4%

State Treasurer

State Treasurer nominee	Votes	Change
John Petersen	335,452 (4.1%)
John Petersen	183,436 (2.3%)	1.8%
Marian Smithson	168,401 (2.3%)	0.0%
Marian Smithson	334,056 (4.%)	1.7%
Edward Teyssier	217,818 (2.3%)	1.7%
None	None	2.3%
None	None

State Controller

State Controller nominee	Votes	Change
Cullene Marie Lang	128,378 (1.6%)
Pamela Pescosolido	147,397 (1.8%)	0.3%
None	None	1.8%
Donna Tello	188,934 (2.7%)	2.7%
Andrew Favor	291,657 (3.0%)	0.77%
None	None	3.0%
None	None

Insurance Commissioner

Insurance Commissioner nominee	Votes	Change
Ted Brown	346,007 (4.2%)
Dale Ogden	169,922 (2.1%)	2.1%
Dale Ogden	236,688 (3.3%)	1.2%
Dale Ogden	305,772 (3.7%)	0.4%
Richard Bronstein	362,037 (4.0%)	0.3%
None	None	4.0%
None	None

State Assembly

Number of candidates	Votes	Change
46	343,366 (3.3%)
35	166,510 (2.1%)	1.2%
26	142,577 (1.5%)	0.5%
38	144,427 (1.9%)	0.3%
52	316,668 (2.8%)	1.0%
36	162,472 (2.4%)	0.48%
34	324,414 (2.9%)	0.3%
21	122,036 (1.5%)	1.3%
15	171,324 (1.4%)	0.1%
18	115,714 (1.2%)	0.2%
0	0 (0.0%)	1.2%
1	30,735 (0.4%)	0.4%
4	130,798 (1.0%)	0.6%
5	145,514 (1.2%)	0.2%

Voter registration

Libertarian voter registration in the state of California has experienced significant growth.^[15]

Year	Registered voters	Voter gain or loss from previous year
2021	204,345	8,237
2020	196,108	42,760
2019	153,348	11,980
2018	141,368	93
2017	141,461	1,656
2016	139,805	17,929
2015	121,876	1,072
2014	120,804	11,168
2013	109,636	900
2012	108,736	16,490
2011	92,246	1,135
2010	91,111	7,748
2009	83,363	211
2008	83,574	154
2007	83,420	45
2006	83,465	503
2005	83,968	5,649
2004	89,617	77
2003	89,540	955
2002	90,495	2,865
2001	93,360	1,540
2000	94,900	12,561
1999	82,339

Governance

The Libertarian Party of California is a "political party that has detailed statutory provisions applicable to its operation", which are in division 7, part 3 of the California Elections Code.^[16] ^[17] The Libertarian State Central Committee, the governing body of the Libertarian Party of California, functions pursuant to its standing rules and bylaws.^[18] The regular officers of the Central Committee are the chairman, two regional vice chairmen, secretary, and treasurer.

County central committees

There are semi-autonomous county central committees for many of California's 58 counties. The counties which currently have active affiliates are as follows:

External links

Notes and References

Web site: Report of Registration as of February 20, 2024 Registration by County. March 31, 2021.
Web site: Qualified Political Parties. California Secretary of State. 2024-03-31.
Web site: Home – Libertarian Party of California. Libertarian Party of California. March 20, 2018.
Web site: Voter Registration Statistics – California Secretary of State. www.SOS.ca.gov. March 20, 2018.
News: LPC Lawsuit . 14 October 1972 . The Californian . https://web.archive.org/web/20191209023418/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40296745/the_californian/ . 9 December 2019 . live . 4 . Newspapers.com.
News: Libertarian runs for state governor . 22 February 1978 . Oakdale Leader . https://web.archive.org/web/20191209025118/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40297718/oakdale_leader/ . 9 December 2019 . live . 6 . Newspapers.com.
News: Liberatarians in appeal for spot on ballot . 15 March 1979 . The San Francisco Examiner . https://web.archive.org/web/20191209030101/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40298047/the_san_francisco_examiner/ . 9 December 2019 . live . 42 . Newspapers.com.
Web site: History of Political Parties That Have Adopted Party Rules Regarding No Party Preference Voters. California Secretary of State. 2024-03-31.
Web site: Brian Holtz, Candidate for Purissima Hills Water District. August 25, 2012. Patch.com. December 17, 2017.
Web site: Elected Officials. June 1, 2024.
Web site: Election 2015: Voters return Harrington to San Gabriel City Council. March 4, 2015. PasadenaStarNews.com. December 17, 2017.
Web site: Simi Valley Acorn. Simi Valley Acorn. December 17, 2017.
Web site: Libertarian Jeff Hewitt Wins Seat on Riverside County Board of Supervisors. December 7, 2018.
Web site: Hewitt voted in as Calimesa's new mayor. NewsMirror.net. December 11, 2015 . December 17, 2017.
Web site: Voter Registration Statistics – California Secretary of State. www.SOS.ca.gov. February 10, 2021.
Eu v. San Francisco County Democratic Central Committee (1989), 489 U.S. 214 . "The State of California heavily regulates its political parties. … The California Elections Code (Code) provides that the 'official governing bodies' for such a party are its 'state convention,' 'state central committee,' and 'county central committees,' …"
[California Elections Code]
"http://u1myo26o1t789cb2l4fjwcx8-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bylaws-and-Convention-Rules-as-Amended-at-Convention-4-29-17.pdf". Bylaws and Convention Rules of the Libertarian Party of California As Amended in Convention April 29, 2017.