Libertarian Association of Massachusetts
Libertarian Association of Massachusetts | |
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| Abbreviation | LAMA |
| Chairperson | Ashley Shade[1] |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Headquarters | Framingham, Massachusetts |
| Membership (2021) | 19,097[2] |
| Ideology | Libertarianism |
| Senate | 0 / 40 |
| House of Representatives | 0 / 160 |
| U.S. Senate | 0 / 2 |
| U.S. House of Representatives | 0 / 9 |
| Website | |
| www | |
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| Part of a series on |
| Libertarianism in the United States |
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The Libertarian Association of Massachusetts (LAMA)[3] is the Massachusetts affiliate of the national Libertarian Party (LP). It is headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts.
Under the system of political parties and political designations in Massachusetts, the Libertarian Party is often the only third political party to receive enough votes to become an officially recognized party alongside the Republican Party and Democratic Party; although the Green-Rainbow Party is sometimes electorally successful enough to qualify.
History[]
Former presidential candidate Ed Clark and Rebecca Shipman, the affiliate's gubernatorial candidate, spoke at the 1982 state convention at the Holiday Inn in Somerville which was attended by the majority of the two hundred registered Libertarians in the state.[4] Later the party attempted to challenge the 40,000 signature requirement to appear on the ballot and force the Secretary of State to accept the 10,000 signatures they had gathered, but the district court rejected the injunction due to "vagueness" in their affidavits.[5]
In the 2002 Senate election the Republican failed to appear on the ballot for the first time in Massachusetts history, coincidentally the previous Republican candidate in 1996 was Bill Weld, resulting in John Kerry's only opponent being Libertarian Michael Cloud which resulted in most conservatives voting for Kerry, but a significant amount voted for Cloud giving him 18.43% of the vote which at the time was the best percentage showing for a Libertarian in a Senate race until Joe Miller received nearly 30% in 2016, but they still hold the total vote record.[6]
At the party's 2018 convention, it formally endorsed ranked-choice voting and nominated candidates for the 2018 midterm elections.[7] Dan Fishman, the political director for the party, ran to be State Auditor of Massachusetts. His campaign was noted for securing an endorsement by the Boston Globe.[8][9][10] Fishman ultimately received 4% of vote in his run which secured ballot access for the Massachusetts state party affiliate.[11][12]
On April 16, 2019, the party's former political director, Dan Fishman, was appointed to be the executive director for the Libertarian Party of the United States.[13]
Electoral performance[]
The best Libertarian showing in Massachusetts in a vote for President of the United States was in the 2016 United States presidential election in Massachusetts when the Libertarian Party's ticket won 4.22% of the vote. Former Massachusetts Republican Governor Bill Weld was on that ticket as the vice president candidate, with Gary Johnson, the candidate for president.
The Massachusetts Libertarian Party had the best percentage showing of any Libertarian candidate in a race for U.S. Senate until Joe Miller's candidacy in the 2016 United States Senate election in Alaska. Carla Howell in the 2000 United States Senate election in Massachusetts had won 11.9% and Michael Cloud in the 2002 United States Senate election in Massachusetts won 18.4% in a two-person race with Democratic John Kerry and no Republican on the ballot.[6]
Presidential[]
| Year | Presidential nominee | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | John Hospers (Write-in) | 43 (0.00%) |
| 1976 | Roger MacBride (Write-in) | 135 (0.01%) |
| 1980 | Ed Clark | 22,038 (0.87%) |
| 1984 | David Bergland | Not on ballot |
| 1988 | Ron Paul | 24,251 (0.92%) |
| 1992 | Andre Marrou | 7,458 (0.27%) |
| 1996 | Harry Browne | 20,426 (0.80%) |
| 2000 | Harry Browne | 16,366 (0.61%) |
| 2004 | Michael Badnarik | 15,022 (0.52%) |
| 2008 | Bob Barr | 13,189 (0.43%) |
| 2012 | Gary Johnson | 30,920 (0.98%) |
| 2016 | Gary Johnson | 138,018 (4.22%) |
House[]
| Year | House candidates | Votes | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | None | None | 
|
| 2012 | 1 | 16,668 (0.71%) |  0.71%
|
| 2014 | None | None |  0.71%
|
| 2016 | 1 | 27,511 (0.94%) | 0.94%
|
| 2018 | None | None | 0.94%
|
Senate Class I[]
| Year | Senate nominee | Votes | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Michael Cloud | 369,807 (18.43%) |
|
| 2008 | Robert J. Underwood | 93,713 (3.13%) | 15.30%
|
| 2014 | None | None | 0.94%
|
Senate Class II[]
| Year | Senate nominee | Votes | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Howard S. Katz | 18,878 (0.92%) |
|
| 1988 | Freda Lee Nason | 13,199 (0.51%) | 0.41%
|
| 1994 | Lauraleigh Dozier | 14,484 (0.66%) | 0.15%
|
| 2000 | Carla Howell | 308,860 (11.88%) | 11.22%
|
| 2006 | None | None | 11.88%
|
| 2012 | None | None |
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| 2018 | None | None |
|
Gubernatorial[]
| Year | Gubernatorial nominee | Votes | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Rebecca Shipman | 17,918 (0.87%) | 1.69%
|
| 1986 | None | None | 0.87%
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| 1994 | None | None |
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| 1998 | Dean Cook | 32,184 (1.69%) | 1.69%
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| 2002 | Carla Howell | 23,044 (1.05%) | 0.64%
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See also[]
- Joseph L. Kennedy
- Bill Weld - former member[14]
References[]
- ^ "LAMA State Committee". Libertarian Association of Massachusetts. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ Winger, Richard. "March 2021 Ballot Access News Print Edition". Ballot Access News. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
- ^ "Homepage". Libertarian Association of Massachusetts. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ "Mass. Libertarians aiming for permanent ballot spot". Boston Globe. February 7, 1982. Archived from the original on 2019-04-17.
- ^ "Election law challenge rejected". Boston Globe. April 16, 1982. Archived from the original on 2019-04-17.
- ^ a b "Fight for control of Senate intensifies". CNN. November 1, 2002. Archived from the original on 2002-11-21.
- ^ "A Clamor in the Commonwealth; Massachusetts Libertarians Look to the Future in Springfield". Independent Political Report. November 1, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-11-06.
- ^ Welch, Matt (30 October 2018). "Boston Globe Endorses Libertarian Dan Fishman for Massachusetts State Auditor". Reason.com. Reason Foundation. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ Johnston, Bob (30 October 2018). "Boston Globe: "Give this Libertarian a shot"". Libertarian Party. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ "Editorial board endorsement: Dan Fishman, a Libertarian, for auditor - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. 29 October 2018. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ "2018 Auditor General Election". PD43+ ». Secretary of the Commonwealth of MA. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ Sarwark, Nicholas (31 December 2018). "2018 Libertarian Party victories and 2019 goals". Libertarian Party. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ Sarwark, Nicholas (16 April 2019). "Dan Fishman joins Libertarian Party staff as executive director". Libertarian Party. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
- ^ Lips, Evan (8 August 2016). "Weld: 'I'll tell you who's going to win'". NewBostonPost. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
Notes[]
External links[]
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