Libertarian candidates raising awareness

In federal and state elections, the majority of the votes are cast for the Democratic and Republican candidates. Rarely does a third-party candidate get enough votes to be considered a major player in any political race. However, two third-party candidates are out on the campaign trail trying to buck that trend in Kansas.

Rob Hodgkinson and Patrick Wilburn are both running for state offices this year as Libertarian candidates in this year's election.

Hodgkinson, a Johnson County resident, is running for Secretary of State, while Wilburn, from Lawrence, is running for Insurance Commissioner. Both men were in Fort Scott last week, concluding a three-week, cross-state campaign tour.

Despite the public's general lack of knowledge about the Libertarian Party -- or any third party for that matter -- both men said they are serious about their races and are fully qualified to do the jobs if elected. At the same time, however, winning the offices is not the primary goal of their campaign.

"I'm not going to blow smoke," Hodgkinson, the state party's president, said. "I'm not going to win. That's the reality. I don't have enough money to get my name out there to enough people in order for me to win this race."

Their mission during this election year is simply to raise awareness about their party.

"A lot of what we're doing is to help the Libertarian Party grow, get people out there to find out about the Libertarian Party because they probably haven't heard too much about us," Hodgkinson said.

Wilburn, the Kansas Libertarian Party's vice-president, said he hopes their campaigns will get people to be active in the Libertarian Party.

"We'd like to see small (Libertarian) groups pop up across the state," Wilburn said. "If we can get that apparatus in place, the next time somebody runs for state office, we'll have that in place. They'll have that advantage."

The main premise of the Libertarian Party is "Individual Liberty, Personal Responsibility." It's a political philosophy that is described as a belief in both economic and social freedom. According to a brochure handed out by the candidates, Libertarians believe in family values and American values.

Hodgkinson described Libertarians as the "true center" of the political spectrum.

"The media always like to portray someone as either left or right," Hodgkinson said. "You're either liberal or you're conservative. Well, that's a bad focus in an election year. I don't fit -- never did."

He added that Libertarians hold some the same beliefs as both Democrats and Republicans.

"The reality is, most conservatives are Libertarian on economic issues -- small government, low taxes, stay out of my wallet," he said. "Most liberals are Libertarian on social issues. They're against the gay marriage ban, they're pro-choice, those types of things. Stay out of my bedroom. Stay out of my social life.

"Well, Libertarians are Libertarians across the board. We're really the true center."

Both men know that trying to raise not only awareness, but support for their party, will not be easy. In order to consider their efforts a success, they do have certain goals they would like to accomplish along the way.

"What we're shooting for is the fact that we would both like to be in double-digit (percent) in the vote count," Hodgkinson said. "It's never been done by the third-party statewide. If that happens, it's a stepping stone, then, for us to grow."

They also have aspirations of being considered a major party in Kansas by 2010.

"In order for us to become a major party in Kansas, we have to get five percent of the vote in the governor's race," Hodgkinson said. "That's not going to happen this year. We have a candidate, but he's not going to get five percent. So, what we're trying to do is build a future."

Wilburn said they have already seen some success from their campaign efforts.

"Just in the last year, we've seen groups pop up in Topeka, Johnson County and we've already had one in Wichita," Wilburn said. "Also, a group at Kansas University has been active on their campus."

There is still plenty of work to be done, though, Hodgkinson said.

"We need to reach out to the media, instead of you trying to find us," he said. "Especially this late in the game, where we are as small as we are."

Hodgkinson said that if the Libertarian Party can make considerable gains each year, the chances of getting a candidate in state offices will increase dramatically.

"Once we get major-party status, it's less likely the press and all other people who deal with this stuff will leave us out," he said. "They'll have to put us in."