Mar 4, 2017 at 2:36 pm | Print View

Libertarians in Iowa now will be able to check the box on their voter registration form officially indicating their political affiliation.

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announced last week that the Libertarian Party of Iowa has attained official political party status.

Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson received 3.8 percent of the vote in the November elections, surpassing the 2 percent threshold required by state law for the party to be recognized.

I would like to congratulate the Libertarian Party of Iowa on being recognized as an official political party by the state, Pate said in a statement Thursday. I encourage all Iowans to become and remain active in the political process.

Johnson received about 3 percent of the vote nationwide in November. He received no electoral college votes.

Now that Libertarians have official party status in Iowa, candidates can participate in 2018 primary elections, and the Libertarian Party will be included as an option for Iowans on voter registration forms.

The Secretary of States office said the last time a political organization was granted full party status in Iowa was the Iowa Green Party in 2000.

The partys nominee at that time, consumer activists Ralph Nader, received 2.2 percent of the presidential votes that year.

There are 9,100 registered Libertarians in Iowa.

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Libertarians gain official party status in Iowa - The Gazette: Eastern Iowa Breaking News and Headlines