Libertarian election results for 2024
For the seventh consecutive electoral cycle, the Libertarian Party of Arkansas fielded candidates in the general election. This year we have two victories to celebrate:
- Frank Gilbert was elected Constable for Big Rock Township in Pulaski County.
- Thomas Turcol was elected Constable for Washington Township in Van Buren county
Congratulations to both!
The election results for all candidates of the LPAR on the ballot are as follows:
Libertarian candidates for Justice of the Peace did exceptionally well, as did several of our state legislative candidates. In many cases, our candidates were the only alternative to the incumbents. In District 75, Michael White earned 35.1% of the vote, a new high for Libertarian State House candidates.
Ballot Access
Unfortunately, the Libertarian candidate for President, Chase Oliver, did not garner 3% of the vote. That means that the Libertarian Party of Arkansas will not be recognized as a political party for the 2026 elections unless we again petition to become a “new political party” (for the eighth time).
In this year’s crowded field of candidates for President, with an election at the top of the ticket so controversial that the total of all votes for alternative party candidates was less than 3%, the outcome is not surprising. But it fails to recognize the contributions of the Libertarian Party of Arkansas to the political process here in our state.
We have, once again, shown that a significant number of voters approve of our presence on the ballot. Arkansas Libertarian candidates received a total of 153,032 votes, representing 7.7% of the votes in their races. In the only partisan statewide race, Michael Pakko earned nearly 50,000 votes, far exceeding the “new political party” petition requirements. Surely this is evidence of a modicum of support necessary to be recognized as a political party.
We call upon the legislature to adopt a new standard for recognition of an established political party—one that acknowledges the role that a state political party plays across our state, not just the votes received in the hotly-contested, top-of-the-ticket race.
