Lone Libertarian looks to claim state rep seat
A Libertarian state representative candidate has not been elected in New Hampshire in 14 years, but Lisa Wilber is persistent.
She was not elected when she first ran for state representative in 2000 or in each consecutive election since then but she continues to run on the Libertarian Party ticket, this year for the eighth time.
Wilber, 51, of Weare is the only state representative candidate running as a registered Libertarian in New Hampshire this year, although she said that other libertarians are running as either Democrats or Republicans.
She is seeking a state representative seat in Hillsborough County District 2 which serves Deering and Weare against three Democrats and three Republicans, including two incumbents. Republican Christine Ivinjack is also running a write-in campaign for a seat in the district; Ivinjack, a Weare resident, ran in the September primary election but did not receive enough votes to get on the ballot.
Three state representative seats are open in the district.
They make it so hard to be anything but the two parties, and the two parties arent that different anymore, Wilber said. If I wanted to run as a Democrat or Republican, you just go up to the town hall and pay $2.
Wilber said that as a third party candidate, in addition to paying the $2 administrative assessment fee, she had to collect 150 signatures before she could file her candidacy.
You have to go through so much to run as a Libertarian, she said.
Steve Vaillancourt was the last Libertarian candidate elected to a state representative seat. Vaillancourt was elected to represent Hillsborough County District 44 Manchester Ward 8 in the 2000 general election; he currently represents the same ward (now Hillsborough Country District 15) as a Republican.
The Libertarian Partys slogan is minimum government, maximum freedom. Wilbers personal platform is focused on freedom and personal responsibility.