Libertarian Party of Ohio

The Libertarian Party of Ohio (LPO) is the Ohio affiliate of the Libertarian Party. The LPO is the 4th largest affiliate of the LP and the 3rd largest political party in Ohio.

Libertarian Party of Ohio
Chairperson	Scott Pettigrew
Vice-Chair
Second Vice-Chair
Treasurer	Linda Comstock
Secretary	Robert Coogan
Member at-large
LNC Region	3
Founded	1972
Address	2586 Tiller Lane Suite 2K Columbus, OH 43231
Website	http://www.lpo.org/

Current Executive Committee

• Scott Pettigrew, Chair
• Linda Comstock, Treasurer
• Robert Coogan, Secretary
• Ann Leech, At Large
• Christopher Gill, At Large
• Tim Smyth, At Large
• Kevin Knedler, Deputy Secretary (non-voting)

Other positions

• Tricia Sprankle, Political Director
• Harold Thomas, Deputy Political Director
• Nicholas Rodriguez, Deputy Political Director - Legislative

History

The Libertarian Party of Ohio (LPO) was created in 1972, led by Kay Harroff Over the years, Ohio Libertarians have been elected to a number of local offices. From the beginning, the mission of the LPO is to make an impact on the political and policy environment in Ohio. The LPO core issues have been limited government, lower taxes, and greater personal liberty.

Ballot Access

The Libertarian Party of Ohio has successfully challenged several ballot access laws. In 2004, Ohio law provided that if a party did not receive five percent of the votes for its presidential or gubernatorial candidate in a general election, the party would need to gather signatures of voters equal to one percent of the number of votes cast for president or governor in the previous election and to file its registration petition 120 days in advance of the primary election, which equated to one year in advance of the general election in presidential election years. The LPO challenged this law on the ground that the combined requirements severely burdened their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of free association. The Sixth Circuit Court found that the Ohio law placed severe burdens on the First Amendment rights of free speech and association of the LPO, its members, and potential voters-supporters, was not narrowly tailored, and did not serve a compelling state interest. Libertarian Party of Ohio v. Blackwell, 462 F.3d 579 (6th Cir. 2006).

The Ohio Legislature did not enact new legislation following Blackwell; however, the Secretary of State issued Directive 2007-09 in an attempt to bring Ohio into compliance. The directive purported to lover the number of signatures to .5% of the number of votes cast for president or governor in the preceding general election and changed the filing deadline to 100 days before the primary. This Directive was struck down on the same First Amendment grounds as Blackwell. Libertarian Party of Ohio v.s Brunner, 567 F. Supp. 2d 1006 (S.D. Ohio 2008).

Past Officials, Staff, and Other Contacts

• Jeremiah Arn, vice chair (c. 2008)
• Matt Bianco, at-large 2
• Robert Butler, executive director (c. 2005)
• Paul Conroy, at-large 1
• Robert DeBross, southwest regional chair (1977-?)
• Jason Hallmark, chair (c. 2005)
• Michael Johnston, treasurer (c. 2009)
• Elizabeth Krepp, secretary (c. 2005)
• Ann Leech, vice chair (c. 2009), secretary (c. 2008), treasurer (c. 2005)
• Bill MacReynolds, chair (c. 1976)
• Mark Noble, at-large 3
• Scott Urquhart, secretary
• Josh Weitzman, vice chair (c. 2005)
• Kevin Knedler, chair (c 2011)
• Michael Johnston, vice chair (c 2011)
• Bryant Callaghan, treasurer (c 2011)
• Daryl Olthaus, secretary (c 2011)
• Bob Bridges, at-large 1 (c 2011)
• Ann Leech, at-large 2 (c 2011)
• Aaron Harris, at-large 3 (c 2011)

Conventions

• October 1973 - Cleveland, Ohio

Elections

See: Libertarian Party of Ohio Historical Election Results

Libertarian Party of Ohio
Affiliates:	Franklin • Hamilton • Knox • Licking • Lorain • Lucas
Conventions:	1973
Central Committees:	2020-2022
Documents:	Bylaws • Constitutions • Newsletters • Platforms
Other:	Election Results