Fayette Co. Now Has a Libertarian Party Branch
The third largest political party in the United States now has an affiliate in Fayette County.
The Libertarian Party of Texas (LP Texas) appointed Judi Lehman of the Flatonia area as chair for the newly-formed Fayette County Libertarian Party on Aug. 19. Lehman said she hopes the county party will encourage libertarians to run for local office.
“It gives people another option when they need one,” Lehman said. “I hope it will push the people who run Fayette County to be more constitutional because they could be challenged.”
Those interested in running for office as a Libertarian need to file for candidacy with Lehman by Dec. 13. The Libertarian Party does not conduct primary elections. Instead, it selects candidates through a convention process. The Fayette County Libertarian Party has not yet set a county convention date, but Lehman said it will take place next March. Candidates for offices higher than the county level will be selected at the state convention in April. Libertarian candidates would face the winners of the primaries in the Nov. 8 General Election.
Anyone interested in filing for candidacy with the Libertarian Party can contact Lehman by email at fayette@lptexas.org. They also have a Facebook page.
The Fayette County Libertarian Party will hold an informal meeting on Monday, Nov. 29 at Las Fuentes Restaurant in La Grange at 6 p.m. Andrew Amelang, an LP Texas representative, will be there to answer questions about the party and the candidate filing. Anyone interested is invited to attend.
In general, libertarians support economic and personal liberty. The Libertarian Party of Texas describes its political philosophy as follows: “Essentially, we believe all Americans should be free to live their lives and pursue their interests as they see fit as long as they do no harm to another … Each individual has the right to control their own body, actions, speech and property. Government’s only role should be to help individuals defend themselves from force and fraud.”