Jo Jorgensen for President
Campaign2020 Libertarian primaries
2020 U.S. presidential election
CandidateJo Jorgensen
Senior lecturer at Clemson University
Spike Cohen
Podcaster and businessman
AffiliationLibertarian Party
Status
  • Announced: November 2, 2019
  • Official nominee: May 23, 2020
  • Lost election: November 3, 2020
HeadquartersGreenville, South Carolina[1]
Key peopleSteve Dasbach (campaign manager)
ReceiptsUS$3,405,357[2] (November 23, 2020)
SloganReal Change for Real People[3]
She's With Us![4]
Let Her Speak[5]
I'm With Her[6]
Break Free From Big Government[7]
Website
www.jo20.com
Original campaign logo

The 2020 presidential campaign of Jo Jorgensen was formally launched on November 2, 2019, at the South Carolina Libertarian Party convention.[8] Jorgensen had previously been the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nominee in 1996, when she ran on a ticket with author Harry Browne.[9] Currently a senior lecturer of psychology at Clemson University,[10] Jorgensen had owned a software company at the time of her 1996 vice presidential candidacy.[9]

Jorgensen's positions are typically described as being consistent with the Libertarian Party's platform.[11][12][13] Her campaign has received less media coverage than those of Gary Johnson, former Republican governor of New Mexico and Jorgensen's predecessor as the Libertarian Party's presidential nominee in 2012 and 2016. Her name recognition upon entering the race is also widely considered to have been lower than Johnson's.[12][13][14][15][16][17] Although Jorgensen is often described as appealing to the Libertarian Party's base, some in the party, such as her main primary opponent Future of Freedom Foundation founder Jacob Hornberger, have criticized her for perceived departures from libertarian ideology in exchange for mainstream appeal.[18]

The Libertarian Party experienced a competitive primary.[19] On May 23, at the virtual 2020 Libertarian National Convention, Jorgensen was selected as the party's 2020 presidential nominee after four rounds of voting by delegates.[20] She is the party's first female presidential nominee.[15] Podcaster Spike Cohen—Vermin Supreme's original running mate—was selected to be Jorgensen's running mate the next day, despite Jorgensen having expressed a preference for fellow presidential candidate John Monds.[21][22]

Background

In 1996, Jorgensen was nominated by the Libertarian Party as its candidate for vice president in the 1996 election. The party's presidential nominee was free market writer and investment analyst Harry Browne.[23] The Browne/Jorgensen ticket received 485,798 votes (0.5% of the popular vote) in the general election, which was won by incumbent president Bill Clinton.[24][25] Jorgensen had previously run for South Carolina's 4th congressional district in 1992, receiving 4,286 votes (2.2% of the popular vote).[26]

Platform

Jorgensen speaking at a rally in Scottsdale, Arizona, October 10, 2020

Healthcare and social security

Jorgensen supports a free-market healthcare system financed by individual spending accounts that could keep any savings, which she believes would increase healthcare providers' incentive to compete by meeting consumer demand for low-cost services.[27][28][29] She opposes single-payer healthcare, calling it "disastrous".[29]

Jorgensen supports replacing Social Security with individual retirement accounts.[30] In the final debate of the 2020 primaries, candidate Jacob Hornberger accused Jorgensen of "support[ing] the welfare state through Social Security and Medicare". In response, she called Social Security a "Ponzi scheme". She then expressed the desire to allow people to opt out of the program on her first day in office, while emphasizing the constitutional inability of a president to unilaterally end the program without Congress's support, as well as the need for the government to fulfill existing Social Security obligations.[31][32] Under Jorgensen's plan, those who opt out would put 6.2% of their payroll taxes in individual retirement accounts and receive prorated Social Security benefits for existing contributions as zero-coupon bonds for retirement.[33]

Criminal justice and drug policy

Jorgensen at a rally in Durham, North Carolina in 2020.

Jorgensen opposes federal civil asset forfeiture and qualified immunity.[34] She opposes the war on drugs and supports abolishing drug laws, promising to pardon all nonviolent drug offenders.[35] She has urged the demilitarization of police.[36]

Foreign policy and defense

Jorgensen opposes embargoes, economic sanctions, and foreign aid; she supports non-interventionism, armed neutrality, and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from abroad.[37][38][34]

Immigration, economics, and trade

Jorgensen calls for deregulation, arguing that it would reduce poverty.[39] She supports cutting government spending to reduce taxes.[40]

Jorgensen supports the freedom of American citizens to travel and trade, calls for the elimination of trade barriers and tariffs, and supports the repeal of quotas on the number of people who can legally enter the United States to work, visit, or reside.[41] In a Libertarian presidential primary debate, Jorgensen said she would immediately stop construction on President Donald Trump's border wall. During another primary debate she blamed anti-immigration sentiment on disproportionate media coverage of crimes by immigrants. She argued that immigration helps the economy and that the blending of cultures is beneficial.[42][43][44][45]

COVID-19

Jorgensen has characterized the U.S. government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic as overly bureaucratic and authoritarian, calling restrictions on individual behavior (such as stay-at-home orders) and corporate bailouts "the biggest assault on our liberties in our lifetime".[28][42][46]

Jorgensen opposes government mask mandates, considering mask-wearing a matter of personal choice. She argues that mask-wearing would be widely adopted without government intervention because market competition would drive businesses to adopt either mask-required or mask-optional policies, allowing consumers the freedom to choose their preferred environment. Jorgensen has invoked the analogy of dollar voting to argue that consumer preferences would shape businesses' policies on face masks in the absence of a government mandate.[47]

Primary campaign

Jorgensen's state-by-state performance in the primaries
  Jo Jorgensen
  Jacob Hornberger
  Vermin Supreme
  No preference

In the Libertarian primaries, Jorgensen placed second in terms of overall votes cast, behind Future of Freedom Foundation founder Jacob Hornberger. Jorgensen won a single primary prior to the Convention, in Nebraska, on May 12, 2020.[48] After Justin Amash entered and then exited the race Jacob Hornberger lost a significant number of votes and on the fourth round of balloting Jorgensen was nominated. She did not endorse anybody to be her running mate and after three ballots Spike Cohen was nominated. After her nomination, she went on to win the New Mexico primary on June 2, 2020, which had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[49][50]

General election campaign

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Ballot access

Jorgensen achieved ballot access in all 50 states and the District of Columbia on September 15, 2020.[51]

Website crash

After the first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, Jorgensen's website crashed due to high volume of traffic.[52]

Campaign finance

Jorgensen raised $3,442,156 on her presidential campaign, loaning $9,784 of her own money to her campaign and raising $3,415,793 from individual contributions. She spent $3,420,928 and has $106,132 in outstanding debts with $21,228 of ending cash in hand.[53]

Candidate Campaign committee
Raised Total loans Ind. contrib. Item. Ind. contrib. Unitem. Ind. contrib. Spent
Jo Jorgensen $3,442,156 $9,784 $3,415,793 $1,113,598 $2,302,196 $3,420,928

Results

Jo Jorgensen's state-by-state performance across the nation. Percentage shades are rough increments of 0.25%.

Jo Jorgensen received 1,865,535 total votes and 1.2% of the national vote, coming third in the nation. She achieved the Libertarian Party's second strongest historical result to date behind Gary Johnson's 2016 presidential campaign. The highest percentage of votes received by Jorgensen was in South Dakota, where she received 2.63% or 11,095 votes.

Endorsements

Jorgensen has received endorsements from Kennedy, Peter Schiff, John Stossel, and Katherine Timpf, among others. She has also received endorsements from many former Libertarian candidates in the 2020 race, including Jacob Hornberger, Justin Amash, Adam Kokesh and Vermin Supreme. In addition, she received an endorsement from 2012 and 2016 Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson.

References

  1. ↑ Jo Jorgensen for President (August 13, 2019). "FEC Form 2: Statement of Candidacy" (PDF). Federal Election Commission. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Jorgensen, Jo – Candidate overview". Federal Election Commission. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
  3. ↑ "'Real Change for Real People' campaign visits Texas". Jo Jorgensen for President. August 24, 2020. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Shop: She's With Us". Jo Jorgensen for President. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  5. ↑ Nickerson, Ryan (July 30, 2020). "Let Her Speak event aims to get Jo Jorgensen on debate stage against President Trump, Biden". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Newspapers. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  6. ↑ Obeidallah, Dean (May 25, 2020). "The truth about 'I'm with her'". CNN. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  7. ↑ Nicholson, Zoe. "Clemson professor wins Libertarian nomination for president". Greenville News. USA Today. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  8. ↑ "SCLP Convention". YouTube. LibertarianParty. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  9. 1 2 Broder, David S. (July 7, 1996). "Seeking Political Breakthrough, Libertarians Pick Harry Browne". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  10. ↑ Putnam, Jeannie (July 9, 2020). "Clemson lecturer Jo Jorgensen chosen as Libertarian Party presidential candidate". Greenville Journal. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  11. ↑ Graham, David A. (July 15, 2020). "The 2020 U.S. Presidential Race: A Cheat Sheet". The Atlantic. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  12. 1 2 Weigel, David (May 26, 2020). "The Trailer: Challenging Democratic incumbents has gotten even tougher". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  13. 1 2 Kilgore, Ed (May 27, 2020). "Libertarians Decide to Become a Joke in 2020". New York Magazine. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  14. ↑ Solender, Andrew (May 26, 2020). "Third Parties Struggle to Break Through in a Tough Election Cycle". Forbes. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  15. 1 2 Steinhauser, Paul (May 25, 2020). "Libertarians pick first female presidential nominee". Fox News. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  16. ↑ Schackner, Bill (August 6, 2020). "Is it Trump? Biden? Nope. It's Jo Jorgensen". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  17. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 21, 2020). "Libertarian Presidential Contender Jo Jorgensen Wants To Combine Principle With Palatable Persuasion". Reason. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  18. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 22, 2020). "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  19. ↑ Welch, Matt (November 7, 2019). "Candidates Vie to Represent the Libertarian Wing of the Libertarian Party". Reason. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  20. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Party Presidential Nomination". Reason. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  21. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 24, 2020). "Libertarian Party Picks Spike Cohen as Its Vice-Presidential Candidate". Reason. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  22. ↑ Lemongello, Steven (July 8, 2020). "Libertarians bring a socially distanced convention to Orlando, with color-coded 'risk bracelets'". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  23. ↑ Broder, David S. "Seeking Political Breakthrough, Libertarians Pick Harry Browne". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  24. ↑ Staats, Craig. "Clinton Captures a Second Term". The Vote '96. AllPolitics. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  25. ↑ "1996 Popular Vote Summary for All Candidates Listed on at Least One State Ballot". Federal Elections 96. Federal Election Commission. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  26. ↑ "Annual Report: 1992–1993" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. p. 82. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Libertarian Party Presidential Candidate Jo Jorgensen campaigns in Wisconsin". WSAW. July 25, 2020. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  28. 1 2 "Jorgensen Brings Pragmatic Approach to Libertarian Presidential Campaign". The Amarillo Pioneer. May 19, 2020. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  29. 1 2 Doherty, Brian (May 21, 2020). "Libertarian Presidential Contender Jo Jorgensen Wants To Combine Principle With Palatable Persuasion". Reason.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  30. ↑ "Social Security". Archived from the original on October 24, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  31. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 22, 2020). "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  32. ↑ "Final Libertarian Presidential Debate with John Stossel". YouTube. LibertarianParty. May 21, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  33. ↑ "Social Security Would Be Drastically Changed Under This Presidential Candidate's Plan". June 28, 2020. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  34. 1 2 "Jo Jorgensen's Bold, Practical, Libertarian Vision for America's Future". Jo Jorgensen for President 2020. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  35. ↑ Dinan, Stephen (June 12, 2020). "Libertarian nominee says Trump, Biden both tainted on race". Washington Times. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  36. ↑ DiStaso, John (June 4, 2020). "NH Primary Source: Libertarian presidential candidate Jorgensen urges end of police 'militarization'". WMUR. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  37. ↑ "Turn America into One Giant Switzerland: Armed and Neutral". Jo Jorgensen for President 2020. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  38. ↑ Doherty, Brian (May 21, 2020). "Libertarian Presidential Contender Jo Jorgensen Wants To Combine Principle With Palatable Persuasion". Reason. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  39. ↑ Solem, Rick (June 13, 2020). "The other 'Jo' wants your 2020 vote, if you're fed up with the two-party system, or if you're not". WIZM News Talk 1410 AM.
  40. ↑ "Taxes", Jo Jorgensen for President, archived from the original on August 9, 2020, retrieved August 17, 2020
  41. ↑ "Trade and Immigration | Libertarian Candidates stance | 2020". Archived from the original on August 9, 2020. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  42. 1 2 "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. May 22, 2020. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  43. ↑ "Final Libertarian Presidential Debate with John Stossel". Youtube.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  44. ↑ "Libertarian Party of Kentucky Presidential Debates: the Finale". Youtube. Archived from the original on July 11, 2020. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  45. ↑ Cami Mondeaux, "The alternative presidential candidate: Jo Jorgensen runs for the Libertarian Party", KLS News radio 102.7 FM, July 5, 2020
  46. ↑ "NH Primary Source: Libertarian presidential candidate Jorgensen urges end of police 'militarization'". www.wmur.com. June 4, 2020. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  47. ↑ Gillespie, Nick (September 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen: Don't Waste Your Vote on Trump or Biden". Reason (Podcast). Event occurs at 21:48–29:06. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  48. ↑ "For President of the United States – Libertarian". Nebraska Secretary of State. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  49. ↑ Corasaniti, Nick; Saul, Stephanie. "16 States Have Postponed Primaries During the Pandemic. Here's a List". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  50. ↑ "Primary Election - June 2, 2020: President of the United States – Libertarian". Election Night Results. New Mexico Secretary of State. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  51. ↑ Voskuil, Connor (September 16, 2020). "LP Presidential Nominee On The Ballot in All 50 States Plus DC". Libertarian Party. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  52. ↑ Scribner, Herb (September 30, 2020). "Who is Dr. Jo Jorgensen? This third-party candidate's website crashed during the 2020 debates". Deseret News. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  53. ↑ "Jorgensen, Jo – Candidate overview". FEC.gov. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
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