2023 Libertarian Party of Sierra leadership election
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The 2023 Libertarian Party of Sierra leadership election took place from June 20 to July 1 in order to determine the next leader of the Libertarian Party of Sierra (LPS). The election was triggered on March 16 when incumbent leader Ryan Porter announced his resignation at a press conference his home district in Maricopa. Porter cited rising factionalism in the party, the party's poor showing in recent federal elections, and a loss of support among the party's executive ranks as reasons for his resignation.
The Libertarian Executive Committee had organized the leadership election to occur on June 20, with a runoff election between the top three candidates being held on July 1 if no candidate is able to reach a majority. Candidacy declarations opened shortly following Porter's announcement on March 16 and were closed on May 20 in preparation for the election. The winner of the 2023 leadership election will be formally elected as party leader by party delegates at a national Libertarian conference, which will take place on July 12. The first round took place and ended with neither candidate securing a majority, triggering a run-off vote that took place on July 1.
The ensuing run-off was between Sarah Behrman and Jethro Kubrick of Maricopa saw the two candidates neck-in-neck in opinion polls once they became the frontrunners, having garnered the most support and best polling numbers along with the backing of candidates who had either been eliminated or withdrew following the first round. The run-off ended with Behrman winning by a narrow margin, but a recount was ordered by the LEC due to the race being so close in accordance with party policy, a recount that Behrman herself opposed. Despite the best efforts of Behrman and her allies, the recount continued and ultimately ended with a reaffirmation of her victory where she been Kubrick by a margin of 0.6%, the closest in any leadership election in the Libertarian Party's entire history. Behrman won 1,079 delegates to Kubrick's 1,065 while McCellan won 137 and both Walsh and Brancanto won less than 40 (34 and 17 respectively). Behrman was sworn in at the 2023 Libertarian National Leadership Conference on July 12.
Prominent issues for the election were the ideological direction and future of the Libertarian Party, foreign police, electoral strategy, and participation in the governing Cornflower coalition among others. The 2023 election was the most controversial leadership election in recent memory with personal attacks being common, especially by Behrman, along with insults and politically charged accusations being made against election opponents with Behrman accusing Kubrick of being a "diet Royalist" and Kubrick likewise responding himself, accusing Behrman of being a right-wing extremist and a Libertarian In Name Only (LINO). The election was also controversial over the actual powers of the party leader as the actual power the the Libertarian leader can wield was dependent on whether or not the winner was a sitting member of the Parliament with Ravinder Didbal being in a position to wield greater power due to his position as the LPS parliamentary leader, a prediction that came true once Behrman, a former MP, was projected to be the winner of the election, becoming the second woman elected Leader of the Libertarian Party.
The election garnered a large amount of media attention, the most since 2020, due to the tense rivalry between Behrman and Kubrick combined with their close poll numbers. The race was deeply competitive and highly contentious due to personal attacks by the two frontrunners being common. The election went viral on social media and was subject to several internet memes and mockery, especially by critics of the party, with many viewing the election as proof of the LPS being at a low point in its history.
Background
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In July, MP Ryan Porter of Maricopa was elected the next Leader of the Libertarian Party and succeeded Ravinder Didbal of Clark following the latter's resignation in the wake of the party's poor showing during the 2020 Sierran federal election where the party suffered a net loss of 18 seats in a historic defeat. Porter ran in the election and emerged as the frontrunner in the race, ultimately winning the election and securing the nomination over his two main opponents; John McCellen of Mohave and Sarah Behrman of Maricopa. Porter won 59.6% of the overall popular vote and secured 1,390 delegates at the 2020 Libertarian National Conference which was held in Las Vegas.
Porter's tenure as Leader of the Libertarian Party would be mired in controversy and internal conflict as he was force to deal with factionalism from within the party's ranks, in particular by Behrman and the Campaign for New Leadership a year into his tenure. During the 2021 Sierran federal election, the Libertarian Party suffered yet another historic loss, losing seven seats of the 14 it had held onto in 2020 with only one newly elected MP being from the Libertarian Party. Porter took personal responsibility for the loss and acknowledged "fundamental flaws" in the Libertarian Party's campaign for the 2021 election which was criticized for a confusing direction and a lack of commitment to traditional libertarian ideology. The 2021 election saw a collapse in support for the party and saw it be classified as a minor party due to its minimal presence in both chambers of Parliament. In 2022, the party made a net gain of one seat and didn't improve its standing in Parliament with their situation being offset by their participation in the national unity government as part of the Chan ministry.
Between 2021 and 2023, the Campaign for New Leadership, a political organization founded by Behrman after the 2021 Sierran federal election, aggressively campaigned for a new leadership election to take place, arguing that Porter was unfit to lead the party due to a poor campaign and strategy during the 2021 election as well as the party suffering another historic loss, being reduced to a minor party and stripped of its status as one of the "big three", being replaced by the Social Democrats of Sierra in its place.
Campaign
Campaigning began in March after Behrman entered into the race where she focused on ideologically reorganizing the Libertarian Party in a more right-libertarian direction, believing that the moderate and soft left-libertarian approach under Porter had doomed the party to further electoral failure and alienated its core base of supporters in the process. Behrman's candidacy was inevitable due to her aggressively lobbying in favor of a new leadership election and seeking to challenge Porter directly. She recieved the immediate endorsement and support from Campaign for New Leadership who has been supporting her election bid since its launch on March 16.
The same day Behrman began her candidacy, Joe Brady from Iron launched his campaign via social media where he posted a video. Brady is the co-president of the Constitutional Alliance of the Deseret and has been notable for his anti-government speeches and activities, support for right-libertarian policies, and his support for the Deseret maintaining its current theodemocratic political system and opposing the ongoing process of secularization by several governments. Brady's announcement was deeply controversial due to his ties to anti-government militias and his support of the armed occupation of the Vernal Court House by the Deseret Defense Force, an anti-unionist and pro-independence militia, in the summer of 2022. Following a successful petition and media coverage, he would be disqualified on March 20, however Brady has refused to accept the motion and has continued to campaign as a write-in candidate.
John McCellen, a former MP from Kingman's Corss (2016–2021) from Mohave and president of the Objectivist Alliance of Sierra since 2008, announced his candidacy on March 17. McCellen has been noted for his close working relationship with Porter, having served as an advisor to him after his win in 2020 and having a seat on the Libertarian Executive Committee as well. McCellen's announcement highlighted his support for and advocacy of Objectivism, a philosophical system developed by Ayn Rand that has influenced Sierran libertarianism for decades. McCellen's campaign is focused on what he calls "human-centered libertarianism" which combines Objectivist concepts such as individualism and rational egoism with elements of human-centered capitalism to maximize "individual pursuits and self-fulfilment in one's personal life".
Cornflower coalition membership
Since December 2022, the Libertarian Party has been part of a grand coalition government alongside its historic ally the Royalist Party and their historic ideological rival the Democratic-Republican Party of Sierra along with each major party's respective allies and is part of the current government under Prime Minister Maggie Chan. Ryan Porter has supported the party's membership in the coalition arguing that it is out of pragmatic benefit to ensure that former prime minister Susan Kwon and the Social Democrats of Sierra do not regain power and to ensure that the Libertarian Party can retain some form of relevancy and a voice in national politics and government. The decision, while largely supported by the Libertarian base, has received more mixed reception from elected officials and other party members.
Behrman has vocally opposed the coalition, calling it a "cynical sellout of freedom" and has supported withdrawing the Libertarian Party from the coalition and has called on it to serve in crossbench in parliament alongside the Christian Democrats who she has refered to as "more likeminded colleagues". Behrman has accused Porter of continueing what she sees as a trend of subordination to the Royalist Party and has accused the practice of abandoning traditional libertarian values and ideology, accusing Porter and his predecessor of transforming the LPS into a "diet Royalist Party" during a January 2023 interview and reiterrated her claim during a debate on May 28. Kasen Walsh has also voiced support for withdrawing from the Chan ministry, accusing the coalition of being "formal submission to anti-liberty interests". The remaining three candidates have voiced support for remaining part of the coalition with McCellan claiming that leaving it would doom the Libertarian Party to complete irrelevancy and throwing it into the "ash bin of politics" during the first Libertarian Candidates debate.
With the exception of Brancanto and Kubrik, the rest of the candidates are not sitting MPs and as such, the decision to remain in the coalition will have to be decided by whoever is leading the party in parliament. Ravinder Didbal, who has served as parliamentary leader of the Libertarian Party since 2020, has stated that he would have to make the final say along with the Libertarian Executive Committee in regards to continueing the party's membership in the cornflower coalition unless a sitting MP is elected leader and decides to go ahead. Didbal has voiced support for remaining part of the coalition and has stated he will oppose any attempt to leave it no matter the outcome of the election, saying in an interview with the Bunker Hill Journal on June 10 "I have no intention to burning away what little influence and say we have left in parliament over petty politics".
Foreign policy
The topic of foreign policy was a notable subject in the 2023 leadership election with the two biggest topics being Sierran membership in the Conference of American States (CAS) and the role of the Kingdom of Sierra in the ongoing Chinese invasion of Manchuria. In regards to the former, the Libertarian Party has long held a conflicted view on the CAS with American unionism and Ameroskepticism varying in terms of levels of support and influence over party policies, policy, and ideology. Amongst the finalists, McClellan and Kubrick both voiced support for remaining in the CAS while Behrman called for Sierra to withdrawal from the Conference, having been a long-time support of Sierrexit, and all institutions and treaties.
Election process
Similar to past elections, the 2023 Libertarian Party leadership election will be organized in a fashion similar to those of traditional primary elections where any candidate running to secure the nomination as the party's next leader must secure a majority of the popular vote and win the most contests. Primary races are held in all provinces in Federal Sierra due to it being where the Libertarian Party has a notable presence in. For the first time, primary races will be held in Hawaii where Libertarian voters in all of Hawaii's states will vote as well despite the party having a minimal presence in the constituent country overall. Primary races will also be held in the Deseret as well while Bajaria remains the only constituent country where primary races won't be held due to the Libertarians lacking any notable presence in the area.
The election uses a two-round system where the first election requires a candidate to reach at least 20% of the popular vote in order to advance to the second round, the run-off, which will occur if no candidate wins a majority of the vote, 50% at minimum, in the first round. If a run-off is needed, the candidates who met the criteria in the first round advance to the runoff where the candidate who secures the largest number and percentage of the popular vote is declared the winner and will be sworn in as the party's next leader. The election uses a winnter take all system, one that has been criticized by many with several calling for a transition to a system of ranked choice voting instead, a position that has proved popular among the Libertarian Party's base.
Candidates
Finalists
| Name | Born | Experience | Home PSA | Campaign Announcement date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Sarah Behrman |
April 3, 1957 (age 67) El Mirage, Maricopa |
Member of Parliament for La Paz Area (2004–2021) Maricopa House Councilor for the 19th district (1988–2004) |
 Maricopa |
Campaign Announced March 16, 2023 |
 Jethro Kubrick |
September 14, 1958 (age 65) Phoenix, Maricopa |
Member of Parliament for Dobson and Tempe (2008–) | Maricopa |
Campaign Announced March 18, 2023 |
 John McCellen |
July 13, 1949 (age 74) British Hong Kong |
President of the Objectivist Alliance of Sierra (2008–) Member of Parliament for Kingman's Cross (2016–2021) |
 Mohave |
Campaign Announced March 17, 2023 |
Eliminated
| Name | Born | Experience | Home PSA | Campaign Announcement date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Kasen Walsh |
February 3, 1983 Phoenix, Maricopa |
President of the TPAA (2022–) Member of Parliament for North Tuscon (2016–2022) EBN News political commentator (2009–2016) Corporal of the Sierran Royal Marines (1999–2007) |
.svg) Sonora |
Campaign Announced March 22, 2023 Eliminated June 20, 2023 |
 Katherine Brancanto |
March 23, 1986 Porciúncula, Gold Coast |
Member of Parliament for Nelis (2022–) Political activist (2019–2022) |
 Clark |
Campaign Announced April 10, 2023 Eliminated June 20, 2023 |
Disqualified
One candidate, Joe Brady, was disqualified from the leadership race by the Libertarian Executive Committee on March 20. He was disqualified for his ties to various controversial militia groups, including the Sentinels of Sierra and the Sierran Constitutional Defenders, and his support for the perpetrators of the Occupation of the Vernal Court House. His disqualification was controversial amongst candidates, with some praising and criticizing the decision.
| Name | Born | Experience | Home PSA | Campaign Announcement date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Joe Brady |
October 24, 1967 (age 86) Fresno, Central Valley |
Co-President of the Constitutional Alliance in the Deseret (2012–) |  Iron |
Campaign Announced March 16, 2023 Disqualified March 20, 2023 |
Declined to run
- Ryan Zhou, co-founder and social media director of the Alliance for a Sierran Republic (2014–) (endorsed Behrman)
- Ryan Porter, Leader of the Libertarian Party (2020–); Member of Parliament for Sunshine Valley (2004–) (outgoing leader)
- Ravinder Didbal, Leader of the Libertarian Party (2013–2020); Parliamentary leader of the Libertarian Party (2020–); Member of Parliament for Spring Valley (2008–)
- Craig Saravia, Member of Parliament for Palm Springs (1997–) (endorsed Behrman)
- Tyler Wilson, Member of Parliament for Kingman's Cross (2021–) (endorsed McCellen)
- Bill Molina, Member of Parliament for Topawa (1999–) (endorsed Kubrick)
- Edward Law, Member of Parliament for Green Valley (2016–) (endorsed Behrman)
Endorsements
- K.S. Members of Parliament
- Craig Saravia, MP for Palm Springs
- Edward Law, MP for Green Valley
- Individuals
- Ryan Zhou, co-founder and social media director of the Alliance for a Sierran Republic
- Organizations
- K.S. Members of Parliament
- Ryan Porter, MP for Sunshine Valley and Leader of the Libertarian Party (2020–2023)
- Provincial officials
- Perry Smith, Leader of the Mohave Libertarian Party (2016–2023)
- Thomas Reed, Member of the Mohave General Assembly for the 14th district (2022–present)
- Organizations