Petition Drive 2008
Libertarians and friends at the national, state, and local levels came together to get Libertarian candidates Bob Barr for U.S. President, Wayne Root for Vice President, and Larry Stafford for Senate on Illinois ballots for the November election.
Through the efforts of our circulators, donors, coordinators, mentors, and committee members we delivered 3,484 petition forms containing 49,562 signatures to the State Board of Elections on June 23, 2008.
Our petitions stood without challenge and our candidates will be on the ballot in Illinois!.
How You Can Help
Fundraising Status
(% of goal)
Donate to the drive. We need your help to pay for the 40,000+ signatures our contractors collected for us. Without them, we wouldn't have a chance of getting on the ballot. If you will vote Libertarian in November, please support the drive by sending your most generous check today to the Libertarian Party of Illinois, P.O. Box 1605, Chicago, IL 60690-1605 or donate securely online.
Help Spread the Word. A better choice for voters exists: the Libertarian Party. The first step to a big election result is to let people know about our candidates. Please post online, email your friends, and write your local paper. Don't let the media get away with just talking about the two old Parties. Tell them you want coverage of the Libertarian Party. Thanks!
Petition Drive Bonus
Getting our candidates on the ballot in November is a great service for the voters of Illinois. But we can also factor in the longer-term opportunity this election presents to us. Election laws make it difficult for "new" parties like us to get on the ballot and reach voters. For example: we have to collect 5 times the number of petition signatures that "established" parties do to get on the ballot. It's grossly unfair, but that's the law as written by the Democrats and Republicans.
However, if any of our national candidates wins 5% or more of the vote, that would make the LP Illinois an "established" party for the next election, the Governor's race in 2010. If we only need to put 1/5 of the effort into getting on the ballot, that provides a huge boost in volunteers and dollars that can be spent on the campaign getting votes. More votes means more libertarian influence. More influence means movement of public policy in a libertarian direction. That's what this opportunity is really all about.
Can we get 5% of the vote? According to Zogby International, we are polling 5% in Illinois already. The Illinois Party grew by 16% last year. Libertarians and libertarian- leaning voters are out there. We need your support to reach them. By making a donation and getting involved with our Party you can take part in making it happen.
More Information
Stay with us on the campaign trail by subscribing to the LP Illinois News Yahoo Group. The News is published twice per month directly to your inbox.
Send questions and suggestions to Crystal Jurczynski, VLI Committee Chair, by email VLI@LPIllinois.org or phone 630-876-1935.
