Dennis Sobin Says He’s Mellowed in Old Age. But He’s Still Making Another Run for Mayor. – Washington City Paper
Dennis Sobin first ran for D.C. mayor 40 years ago. Since then, hes made millions in the sex trade, lost those millions, moved to Florida, spent years in prison, gotten out, launched a nonprofit, written plays for the Kennedy Centers stage, and run a bevy of losing political campaigns.
But after all that, hes back in pretty much the same spot four decades later. A lot has changed in D.C., but Sobin is still running for mayor.
Hes earned the Libertarian Partys nomination to take on Mayor Muriel Bowser and hes all set to appear on the ballot this November, elections officials confirm to Loose Lips. And Sobin tells LL that hell run on much the same platform that has defined his wild career in D.C. politics: The full legalization of drugs and sex work.
Sobin was the master of over-the-top theatrics in his heyday, running a series of campaigns in the 1980s staffed by sex workers and funded by his massage parlors, but dont expect any of that this time around. He says hes a little more mellow now, and why shouldnt he be? City Paper declared Sobin D.C.s oldest living smut kingpin in its last cover story on him, and that was 12 years agohell turn 79 in a few months.
Hed have a snowballs chance in hell of winning as a Libertarian in D.C. even without his particular policy positions or his sordid past (there are something like 2,300 registered Libertarians in the city, as of June 30). So why keep running? He hasnt been much involved in local politics since his last mayoral bid in 2010 and he has his advocacy work with incarcerated artists to occupy him.
Yet Sobin sees this as his last hurrah to make something interesting out of his self-described twilight years. After all, he notes that hes actually a few months younger than President Joe Biden, so he sees no reason not to make another go of it.
I think Bowser really has done a good job, and I would follow her policies in every area except for law enforcement, Sobin says. I want to concentrate on real crime, not have them bother with the enforcement of victimless things like sex and drugs. If, during the campaign, I could convince the mayor thats the way to go, I think we would be on the right track and who knows, if I become mayor, I could hire her as my assistant.
If anything, Sobin believes mainstream politics have moved pretty firmly in his direction over the last few years. Not only has D.C. decriminalized marijuana and some psychedelics, but there have been at least some conversations about decriminalizing sex work toohe notes that even the mayor uses the term sex worker instead of the more loaded term prostitute.
He notes that he doesnt believe quite as fervently in the value of private ownership as many of his fellow Libertarians, and he sees the value in the welfare state (he relies on Social Security checks and food stamps to get by, so Sobins an unusual fit for such a virulently anti-government party). Thats why he expects his once-radical message might catch on a bit more than it did in his previous runs for mayor and Council.
I happen to be addicted to a drug myself, and thats Viagra, Sobin says. If they made it illegal, I might go out and steal and shoplift, too, if I couldnt afford it. So whats the harm of giving someone heroin if theyre addicted the way Im addicted to Viagra?
Of course, Sobin is well aware that people will be skeptical of him because of his pasthis time running brothels and producing porno magazines is one thing, but his convictions on fraud and child pornography charges are another.
He insists hes become more educated and insightful over the years, and has changed many of his ways. Im no longer a provider of sexual services, but I am still a consumer, he notes, but says he has otherwise stayed out of trouble. Court records confirm that Sobin has certainly slowed down a bit compared to his younger dayshis last case in D.C. Superior Court involved him suing the Department of Motor Vehicles in 2021, alleging fraud. It went about the way you might expect and was dismissed in May.
Yet he isnt much concerned with what people might think of him, buying into P.T. Barnums old maxim that theres no such thing as bad publicity.
People dont remember a lot of stuff when they walk into a polling place, but they may well look at the ballot and say Hey, I remember his name, Sobin says.
LL might suggest, however, that most people have a negative association with Sobins name, if they remember it at all. Hes periodically made headlines over the past few years with his very public, very ugly disputes with an estranged sonthe younger Sobin once had a restraining order against his father and worked for the District government, meaning that Sobin wouldnt be allowed to go to the Wilson Building if hed somehow won his mayoral bid.
That son has since left for a different job, per his LinkedIn page, so Sobin is in the clear on that count. However, their relationship remains frostySobin says the two havent spoken in years.
In the likely scenario that Sobin loses, he says hell have plenty to keep himself busy. Hell keep on running his Prisons Foundation and Safe Streets Arts Foundation, nonprofits that work with incarcerated people and help distribute their books and other works of art.
He seems generally content with the idea that hes pretty much faded into obscurity these days, quite the statement for a man that was once a fixture on City Papers pages (he infamously appeared on one cover in 1988 while completely nude and holding a blow-up sex doll). This may well be his last appearance in this publication or any other.
And thats fine by him. Sobin says hes never actually read any of City Papers voluminous coverage of his lifes twists and turns.
The way I see it, itd either make me feel bad, or itd inflate my ego, Sobin says. Neither seems good.
See more here:
Dennis Sobin Says He's Mellowed in Old Age. But He's Still Making Another Run for Mayor. - Washington City Paper
- British politicians are turning me into a libertarian - The Critic - December 22nd, 2024 [December 22nd, 2024]
- Our Libertarian moment is coming. Why opposition will weather it better | Opinion - The Topeka Capital-Journal - December 22nd, 2024 [December 22nd, 2024]
- Libertarian Populism Killed the Spending Bill - The American Conservative - December 22nd, 2024 [December 22nd, 2024]
- Analysis | Will Trump have a Libertarian in his Cabinet? - The Washington Post - December 18th, 2024 [December 18th, 2024]
- Reports of the NC Libertarian Partys death have been exaggerated - Carolina Journal - December 18th, 2024 [December 18th, 2024]
- Time Reflects the Revolution of Libertarian Liberalism: Trump and Milei on the Global Stage - InfoNegocios Miami - December 14th, 2024 [December 14th, 2024]
- ARGT: Riding The Libertarian Wave Of Economic Revival - Seeking Alpha - December 12th, 2024 [December 12th, 2024]
- The Washington Post's Kate Cohen Discovers Inner Libertarian - RealClearMarkets - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Heres to hoping Trump delivers on some of his Libertarian promises - OCRegister - November 23rd, 2024 [November 23rd, 2024]
- Publish more libertarian and conservative voices, and more Cameron Smith columns | Letters - Tennessean - November 23rd, 2024 [November 23rd, 2024]
- Liberal, conservative and libertarian students discuss the state of the country after election - Wyoming Public Media - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- Expecting pardon from Trump, libertarian writer pleads guilty in Capitol riot case - WUSA9.com - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- ITS BEEN THE HONOR OF MY LIFETIME TO BE THE LIBERTARIAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT - Chase Oliver - November 14th, 2024 [November 14th, 2024]
- 2024 Election Wrap Up - Libertarian Party of Michigan - November 14th, 2024 [November 14th, 2024]
- RFK Jr., who dropped out of presidential race in August, received more votes in Alabama than Green Party, Libertarian Party combined - Yahoo! Voices - November 14th, 2024 [November 14th, 2024]
- Who is Chase Oliver? What to know about the Libertarian candidate appearing on US ballots - USA TODAY - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Colorado fights Libertarian Party lawsuit seeking hand count after leak of voting-machine passwords - Washington Times - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- How the Libertarian presidential candidate could be a spoiler for Trump - Washington Examiner - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Excluding the Libertarian may have saved Miller-Meeks in IA-01 - Bleeding Heartland - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Who is Chase Oliver, Libertarian candidate garnering attention in the US elections? - Firstpost - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Colorado Libertarian Party calls for hand count in lawsuit over leaked voting-machine passwords - Washington Times - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Opinion: Masks are over, and so is the Libertarian Party in Indiana - IndyStar - October 31st, 2024 [October 31st, 2024]
- Mailer in CD-3 appears aimed at boosting Libertarian candidate - The Durango Herald - October 31st, 2024 [October 31st, 2024]
- Raw interview with Bernard Johnson, Libertarian candidate for U.S. Representative, District 19 - MyFoxZone.com KIDY - October 31st, 2024 [October 31st, 2024]
- Meet the Libertarian running for Congress in IN-3 - WANE - October 28th, 2024 [October 28th, 2024]
- Q&A: Gideon Oakes, Libertarian candidate for Public Utilities Commission - News From The States - October 16th, 2024 [October 16th, 2024]
- Libertarian Donald Rainwater thinks he can win it all in 2024 - WTHITV.com - October 9th, 2024 [October 9th, 2024]
- Libertarian Rainwater thinks he can win it all in 2024 - pharostribune.com - October 9th, 2024 [October 9th, 2024]
- Libertarian Donald Rainwater thinks he can win it all in 2024 - Chronicle-Tribune - October 9th, 2024 [October 9th, 2024]
- Harry Bronson, candidate for NYS Assembly; the state of the Libertarian party; How to make college more accessible: coming up on... - October 4th, 2024 [October 4th, 2024]
- Opinion | Vivek Ramaswamy Is No Friend of the Libertarian Movement - The Wall Street Journal - October 1st, 2024 [October 1st, 2024]
- Libertarian Party has the right platform to restore America -- Tim Johnson - Madison.com - September 22nd, 2024 [September 22nd, 2024]
- Lyon Countys current sheriff will appear on November ballot as Libertarian candidate - Dakota News Now - September 22nd, 2024 [September 22nd, 2024]
- N.H. Libertarian Party encourages 'assassination' of Harris, drawing scrutiny from state, federal authorities - WBUR News - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Feds aware of' NH Libertarian Party's post glorifying killing of VP Harris - NBC Boston - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- N.H. Libertarian Party shares, deletes post on X endorsing the assassination of VP Harris - The Boston Globe - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Libertarian Party NH Posts Position on Political Assassinations - InDepthNH.org - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- New Hampshire Libertarian Party shares and deletes post that suggests assassinating Harris would be heroic - The Independent - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Lyon Countys current sheriff will appear on November ballot as Libertarian candidate - KTIV Siouxland's News Channel - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Libertarian Party of New Hampshires Post on X Urging Assassination of Harris Prompts Visit From FBI - The New York Sun - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Demands for investigation after NH Libertarian Party shares threatening Harris - AlterNet - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates for Congress will not be on Iowa ballots after final court decision - KCRG - September 14th, 2024 [September 14th, 2024]
- Iowa Libertarian Party appeals to Supreme Court to have names on ballot - WHO TV 13 Des Moines News & Weather - September 14th, 2024 [September 14th, 2024]
- Newscast 9.12.2024: Libertarian congressional nominees won't be on Iowa ballots; College enrollments up at all 3 Iowa public universities &... - September 14th, 2024 [September 14th, 2024]
- Libertarian will run write-in campaign - Southeast Iowa Union - September 14th, 2024 [September 14th, 2024]
- New IMF chief negotiators leave Libertarian gov't reassessing the turf - MercoPress - September 14th, 2024 [September 14th, 2024]
- Meet the gay, gun-toting libertarian whos giving Trump a run for his money in swing states - Reckon - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates for Congress will not be on Iowa ballots after final court decision - WOWT - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa Libertarian Congressional candidates say the race isnt over - KCRG - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa Supreme Court: Libertarian candidates for Congress wont be on the ballot - The Gazette - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates for Congress will be left off Iowa ballots after final court decision - Houston Chronicle - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Chase Oliver seeks to build Libertarian Party through White House run, targeting ballot access wins - 11Alive.com WXIA - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa Supreme Court rules that Libertarian candidates can be kept off the ballot - The Center Square - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates for Congress will be left off Iowa ballots after final court decision - The Caledonian-Record - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Libertarian Congressional Candidates Lose Bid To Be On Iowa Ballot - iHeart - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against putting Libertarian candidates on the ballot - ABC 6 News KAAL TV - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa Supreme Court rejects Libertarian Party bid to appear on November ballot - kwwl.com - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - News-Press Now - September 12th, 2024 [September 12th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - The Associated Press - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa Judge Rules Against Libertarian Candidates, Keeping Their Names off the Ballot for Congress - U.S. News & World Report - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - KCCI Des Moines - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - ABC News - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - Local 5 - weareiowa.com - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- OPB Politics Now: Why Oregons Republican Party is so focused on the tiny Libertarian Party - Oregon Public Broadcasting - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Libertarian Candidate for State Treasurer Hopes to Give the People a Window into the Treasury - Arkansas Money & Politics - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - The Caledonian-Record - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa court heart arguments over Libertarian candidates ballot access - ABC 6 News KAAL TV - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - Globe Gazette - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - LocalNews8.com - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress - Oil City Derrick - September 8th, 2024 [September 8th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates argue to judge to get back on Iowa ballot. When will a ruling come? - Des Moines Register - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates in Iowa fighting to place their names on the ballot - WQAD Moline - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- I want to provide an alternative to voters: Libertarian nominee Chase Oliver | The Hill - NewsNation Now - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Current Lyon County Sheriff allowed to appear on ballot as Libertarian - KCAU 9 - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Current Lyon County Sheriff allowed to appear on ballot as Libertarian - KELOLAND.com - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Judge gives Libertarian Party a court win, temporarily halting ballot certification - KGAN TV - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Hearing held for sheriff to be allowed as libertarian candidate - Dakota News Now - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Iowa Libertarian Party granted a temporary injunction on ballot approval - UI The Daily Iowan - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Libertarian Sid Daoud might be an election spoiler. He doesn't care. - Daily Inter Lake - September 6th, 2024 [September 6th, 2024]
- Libertarian candidates for US Congress removed from November ballot in Iowa - The Associated Press - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]