2007 Local Election Opportunities

Berlie Etzel, WVChair@lppa.org

The 2007 election year gives us a very good opportunity to get Libertarians on the ballot and to get them elected. Numerous local and county-level positions are often left “open” at the Primary Election Date (May 15th) and also on election day (Nov. 6th).

There are two ways to get on the ballot for Nov. 6, 2007:

Method One: Write-in on May 15th.
By checking with your county election officer and asking for a copy of the D and R Primary Ballot, you can then see at a glance the “open” positions. The D and R have not even bothered to get a couple signatures, or they forgot to get the minimal amount of signatures! What can you do? Just prepare about 30 small slips of paper to hand out outside the polling place. An example for Auditor might read like this:

Please write in:
Berlie Etzel
For: Township Auditor
6 Year Term
Vote for one only.
Do not leave this in the booth.
Thank you!

Begin passing these slips out to the D or R ‘s as they come to the polling place. You may pass them out to all, depending on the “open” situation! Don’t begin until 5 P.M. Why? We don’t want to awaken them to their own lack of action, and they may track down a bunch of their voters to keep you from being on the Nov. 6 ballot. This actually happened twice locally!

If enough votes are written in for you, either on the D or R, or both, you will be on the November ballot. Ballot position is everything!

Method Two: The day after the Primary is over, you can begin collecting signatures on the “Nomination Paper” to get on the ballot as a Libertarian. Be sure that this is not a “Petition” paper used by the D/R’s.

The nomination papers can be signed by any registered voter of the district. Collect more than the minimum required number for that position. It may be as few as 10, but get 20 or 30 to be sure that all are officially registered. You have until July 31st to submit the paper to the county election office.

If successful on Method 1 and Method 2, your name will be listed in the Libertarian, Republican, and/or the Democratic positions on the ballot.

Some positions of Auditor, Constable, Township Supervisor, Tax Collector, Sheriff, District Attorney, Magistrates, County Commissioners, etc. are up for election this year.

For example, the Auditors’ positions are in all precincts, rotating in 6 year terms. My wife, Rochelle, and I, have been auditors of our township. In our second-class township, we had the opportunity to control spending, stop fraudulent bidding processes and set the wages and benefits of the working supervisors. We believe that the auditors position for Libertarians is perfect for our limited-government stand.

I would like to add that the auditor does not need to be a certified accountant, or CPA. You are elected, and can immediately check-the-books, so to speak! An annual audit is done in January. There is the opportunity to go to a one-day training provided by the township and the Auditor-General of Pa. (Fully paid by the township.)

At the present time, I am an elected Constable, and Rochelle is the tax assessor. She does not prefer this position, but until the taxes are reduced or eliminated, they ought to be correct.

In whatever township, borough, town, or city you live, please check out the possibilities, and help to replace the D/R controllers with true Libertarians!

Berlie Etzel is the LPPa Western Vice Chair and currently serves as Constable of Ashland Township.