Barr Wins Libertarian Nomination

It took six rounds of balloting, but former Georgia Republican Rep. Bob Barr beat Mary Ruwart, the choice of the Libertarian Party’s radical caucus, for the LP’s presidential nomination earlier today. Wayne Allyn Root, another ex-Republican, took the vice presidential slot after a tight race with medical marijuana activist Steve Kubby. Mike Gravel made it to the fourth ballot, but was eliminated at that point with just 76 out of 629 votes.

In a subsequent vote for the running-mate spot, Root narrowly edged Steve Kubby, a California activist best known for successfully promoting a ballot initiative that legalized medical marijuana in that state.

Barr is someone who brings an instant level of credibility to the LP that it hasn’t had in its entire history. In a year with so many disgruntled libertarian-leaning conservatives, he represents a real opportunity to siphon off votes from McCain.