ALBANY, N.Y. (APS) — The New York Libertarian Party is preparing to place its presidential candidate on the Empire State’s ballot. New ballot access requirements dictate that the Libertarians, along with other parties lacking automatic access, must gather 45,000 signatures between April 16 and May 28 to secure their spot on the ballot.
Additionally, they must obtain a minimum of 500 signatures per congressional district.
Since 1976, the Libertarian Party has consistently nominated a presidential candidate in New York, reaching its highest performance on their own line in 2020 when Jo Jorgenson secured over 60,000 votes. In 2016, the party’s ticket, including former Massachusetts Governor and New York gubernatorial candidate Bill Weld, received over 176,000 votes after the Independence Party endorsed them.
Currently, the Democratic, Republican, Working Families, and Conservative parties are the only parties in New York State with automatic ballot access. Historically, the Working Families Party has cross-endorsed Democratic candidates, while the Conservative Party has done the same with Republican candidates.
In 2020, the Green and Independence parties fielded their own candidates, Howie Hawkins and Brock Pierce, respectively. For the current cycle, Dr. Jill Stein, the Green Party’s nominee in 2012 and 2016, is leading her party’s primary, while the Independence Party’s activity has slowed, evidenced by their inactive party website. The Greens will also undergo the ballot petitioning process.
Incumbent President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are the presumed nominees for the Democratic and Republican parties, respectively.
The Libertarians will finalize their official presidential and vice-presidential candidates at their national convention in Washington, D.C., scheduled for late May. Notable contenders for the nomination include Chase Oliver, who secured victories in five state primaries during his 2022 U.S. Senate bid in Georgia, as well as 2000 vice-presidential nominee Art Oliver and former party Vice Chair Joshua Smith.
Due to New York’s petitioning process preceding the party’s nominating convention, stand-in candidates will be employed temporarily until official nominees are confirmed. The stand-in candidates include former gubernatorial nominee Larry Sharpe and the party’s second Vice Chair Rich Purtell. Sharpe briefly pursued the party’s vice-presidential nomination in both 2016 and 2020.
The upcoming significant election in New York will feature closed primaries for state and federal legislative offices on June 25, with early voting scheduled from June 15 to June 23. The general election is slated for November 5, with early voting running from October 26 to November 3.