LPNY Home Libertarian Party of NY -- 2006 Petitions -- 2008 will be substantially the same -- check back here for updates as it comes closer.

If you can't help collect signatures, please help us financially!

The Board of Elections of New York requires us to collect 15,000 signatures of registered voters in New York in order for our candidates to be on the statewide ballot. For local races, they require a similar proportion--5% of the number of voters in the prior gubernatorial election for the district you're running in. Of course, we need to collect nearly twice that many, in order to be 'challenge-proof.'

When to petition
We follow the dates and requirements for NY's Independent Bodies. For 2006, we start petitioning July 11 and we can start handing them in on August 15. The NYC petitions, in particular, need time to organize the giant volumes of petition sheets for submission to the Board of Elections before the absolute final date of August 22. There's no starting early--your petitions CANNOT have any signatures dated outside of the petitioning period.

All petitions must be sent prior to August 19th to Gary Popkin, 849 President Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215, with the witness section filled out and signed.

Call 516-767-4688 (516-SOS-GOVT) now to get involved, or write to chair Richard Cooper at nylibertarian -at- Hotmail.com.

Collecting notarized signatures

If you're not a registered voter in NY, but are eligible to be a Notary Public, that is another option for petitioning. To find out about becoming a notary, see the website for the state's Department of Licensing. They have one page that links to nearly everything you should need in terms of Notary Public Information, including Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

You'll need to take the notary exam, which is scheduled regularly around the state. To ace the test, you just need to study (memorize!) one approximately 35-page collection of all of the Notary License Law from the various sections where it appears in NY's Consolidated Laws.

Make sure to leave plenty of time to receive your license before the petitioning period starts! The application must be submitted with a successful test result attached. Your results can take several weeks to arrive after you've taken the exam. Then, per the FAQs, it could take 4 to 6 weeks after your application is submitted before you receive your license.

You will also need to use special notary petitioning forms. Contact the petitioning coordinator for the notary version of the forms if you do not find them on this page in a given year.

Statewide petitions

for your folder: Statewide petition for use in NYC
for your folder: Statewide petition for use outside of NYC
for your folder: Statewide petition for use inside OR outside of NYC

Local petitions that can be combined with the statewide petitions

for your folder: Kim D'Souza petition
for your folder: Warren Redlich petition
for your folder: Eric Sundwall petition
for your folder: Eric Sundwall and Kim D'Souza petition
for your folder: Michael Sylvia petition

The local petitions include the statewide candidates as well. Each signature you gather counts for five candidates, so if you're near one of our candidates that file in Albany, please make your effort even more valuable to us! You do not need to live in the district of the candidate, just be a registered voter somewhere in NY or be a NY notary. More information about our candidates, including links to the their sites, so you can get non-combined petitions from them.

for your folder: Look for the folder icon below for other items to print out and take with you while petitioning

Please join our petitioning list to talk to other libertarians about helping out. Or, just download the petitions and get started, if you already know what to do.

The Statewide candidates are nominated at the annual state convention. Petition forms for lower-level candidates to combine with the statewide candidates will be available whenever that is possible. We hope to take advantage of cross-county petitioning wherever we can! (Talk to Jim Harris about that.) The Libertarian Party of NY's 1998 gubernatorial candidate, Chris Garvey, offers the following advice: "If you can get the board or pen into his hands, chances improve. When the crowd is responsive, you can get one per minute. Two clipboards -- no waiting, but watch both signers. You are after all, a witness.

"Don't let anyone 'sign for my boyfriend.' Such people are major party agents, looking to create an election fraud case against you, to invalidate all your signatures. Give her a blank sheet on which SHE can witness her boyfriend's signature and tell her to send it to Gary Popkin. He's listed on the petition on the committee on vacancies." Chris also offers a great line to try: "We need 15,000 signatures to get our candidate on the ballot, but we only need one from you."

Finally, some tips from Dave Hoesley in Rochester, written for Steve Healey's 2000 campaign. He explains "the difference betwen 20 and 50 signatures per hour"--a must-read! (also in an MS Word version)

Get some friends to come out with you!

With two or three people, you can more easily cover the entrances to your local post office or DMV. Have fun with it! "Let's head out, collect signatures for two hours, and then have a beer. The one with the fewest signatures pays."


for your folder: Bring these with you while petitioning!

for your folder: LPNY Statewide petitions: see above
for your folder: Petitioning Instructions
for your folder: Libertarian NY State Candidates (you've got to know who's running!)
for your folder: Voter Registration Forms If someone is not registered to vote, give them a new Voter form that includes an "other" line. Make sure you let them know they can enroll as a Libertarian! (right-click to download from the Board of Elections)
for your folder: Notice of your legal right to petition on public property. This is an interesting item, and deserves its own page on the site.

Also bring: pens, clipboards, the "World's Smallest Political Quiz," Libertarian Party cards, and a few of your friends!

Volunteer petitioners are needed to make a successful volunteer petitioning effort possible. An email list has been created to faciliate the petitioning effort:
lpny_petitioning@yahoogroups.com. Sign up at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lpny_petitioning

Region 2006 Petitioning Contacts
Statewide Coordinators Contacts:
Gary Popkin gary_popkin - at -hotmail.com(Kings/Manhattan)
John Clifton, LPNY 2006 Petitioning Collection Coordinator, mrjclifton -at- yahoo.com

All petitions must be sent prior to August 18th to Gary Popkin, 849 President Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215

Long Island Audrey Capozzi AudGeo - at -aol.com (Suffolk)
Jim Harris jimharris.po1036.11571 - at -worldnet.att.net (Cross-County Champion)
New York City Gary Popkin gary_popkin - at -hotmail.com(Kings)
John Clifton, mrjclifton -at- yahoo.com (Queens)
Mid-Hudson Valley Donald Silberger 845-255-8819 donsilberger - at -hvc.rr.com
Capital area Werner Hetzner whetzner -at- mac.com
Rochester & surrounding counties See the links to the Kessler and Edes campaigns on our candidates page, and please get in touch with them!
Southern Tier Get in touch with the Ithaca Libertarians!
Northern NY Bonnie, at rabbit - at -cownow.com
Western NY we're looking for a coordinator!

Related Links:

About our candidates
Donate to the party

History:

About our 2003 win in court that established an "other" line for party enrollment where people can write in "Libertarian"
Bob Schulz's fight for more fair ballot access November 1994 LP Press Release
Ballot access in New York State (from early 1994) by William Kone
The 1994 Petition Drive by Blay Tarnoff










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