Libertarian Presidential Candidate Bob Barr Sues New Hampshire's Secretary of State

Bob Barr’s campaign says New Hampshire voters should not have a choice of two Libertarians to vote for in November.

Campaign manager Russell Verney says that’s because the national party already chosen their one Presidential candidate.

Bob barr is the official nominee of the libertarian party and is going to be on the New Hampshire ballot on November 4th but because of anomaly in state law there will also be a second candidate with the libertarian label on the ballot.

That second candidate is George Phillies, who also says he has the right to be representing his party on the general election ballot.

Phillies says the reason is clear.

The Libertarian party of new Hampshire state convention a year and a half ago nominated me as their presidential candidate. They knew they didn’t have substitution. They knew the national party may not nominate me and they had an option called none of the above which would have meant they wouldn’t have nominated anyone, they would have put things off. And they did not do that.

Barr campaign officials say the Phillies argument is not enough to keep him on the ballot.

Manager Russell Verney says that’s because political parties such as the Democrats typically have more than one candidate seeking office during primary season.

But Verney says only one candidate emerges as the party’s general election nominee.

Democrats in new Hampshire selected Hilary Clinton. It doesn’t put her on the ballot for the general election….

The Secretary of State’s office says both men are on the November ballot, but not because of party politics.

Instead, both candidates qualified for the ballot by gathering the necessary number of voter signatures.

Secretary of state Bill Gardner says political parties gain recognition from the state when they satisfy certain conditions in the law.

To be a legal party you must have had a candidate for either governor or united states senate on the previous state general election ballot. And that candidate received at least 4 percent of the vote.

Secretary of state Gardner says Libertarians haven’t reached that threshold in recent elections.

We don’t recognize a “Libertarian Party” in this state because the party did not have a candidate in the last election who got the 4 percent necessary for the party, for it to be a party.

State officials say because Libertarians aren’t viewed as a party, primaries aren’t necessary to select candidates.

As a result, more than one candidate can be listed on the general election ballot.

The state has already sent voters absentee ballots, and is in the process of sending cities and towns their ballots.

The court hasn’t yet set a date for any proceedings on the Barr lawsuit.

But with less than 4 weeks to Election Day, the Barr campaign is hoping the court will rule soon.