# Tell me what the appeal is about the Libertarian Party **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 25, 2026, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769 "2026-03-25T22:36:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/1 "2026-03-25T22:36:14Z")
Oftimes it is said that people should vote for the Libertarian Party because the other two major parties are pretty much the same…or even that the Republicans are actually “liberal”. Without talking about what is supposedly wrong with those two major parties, can anyone tell me what is supposed to be right with the Libertarian Party? I want to know why I should vote “L”, not why I shouldn’t vote “R” or “D”. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/2 "2026-03-25T22:47:35Z")
Most third parties in the US are mostly motivated by “Well, we’re not either of the two big ones”, and appeal to contrarians who like to think of themselves as different from everyone else. This applies to the Libertarians, the Greens, whatever Perot called himself, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/3 "2026-03-25T22:47:41Z")
I’d say it holds great appeal for selfish pricks. Seriously though, I won’t claim to have any real understanding of capital L Libertarianism. What I think I know (and could very possibly be false) comes from reading Robert Heinlein (probably closer to patriotic fascism) and listening to Penn Jillette’s podcast. Interestingly, Penn no longer considers himself a Libertarian. During COVID he felt they were behaving like… well, like selfish pricks. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/4 "2026-03-25T22:53:59Z")
In _theory_, it is conservatism but with more freedom and less taxes or meddling. One of which being legalization of drugs like weed or shrooms. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/5 "2026-03-25T22:57:31Z")
From what i saw, mostly they are now GOPers who quit the party due to trump. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/6 "2026-03-25T23:00:26Z")
Not asking about small “l” libertarianism or why people left their parties for something else. I want to know about the Libertarian Party itself. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/7 "2026-03-25T23:01:40Z")
There’s a kind of absolutism to libertarianism that on first blush seems blissfully simple and requiring little brainwork or compromise. In reality, making libertarianism work as a political movement/party or a practical form of government is nothing but compromise. ETA: People are attracted to the Libertarian Party because they think it is the same as little L liberatearianism. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/8 "2026-03-25T23:04:28Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Not asking about small “l” libertarianism or why people left their parties for something else. I want to know about the Libertarian Party itself. And that is what I answered. I know a few ex-Republicans who redid their party affiliation as Libertarian. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/9 "2026-03-25T23:07:54Z")
There are countless other parties that are not the Republican Party. Why specifically did they pick the Libertarian Party? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/10 "2026-03-25T23:11:49Z")
Because they said it appealed to true conservative values. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/11 "2026-03-25T23:22:00Z")
Now, what can you tell me about “the true Conservative Values” officially supported by the Libertarian Party… without referring back to Republicans, Democrats, or the Parties they belong to, as requested in the OP? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/12 "2026-03-25T23:29:14Z")
Basically, they claim to be the simple solution to the complex problem? Isn’t there a saying about that that ends with “…and wrong.”? ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/13 "2026-03-25T23:29:57Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Isn’t there a saying about that that ends with “…and wrong.”? Yeah, but Libertarian party members are the ones _who don’t believe that_. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/14 "2026-03-25T23:31:49Z")
What are some of these simple solutions they espouse that cause them to believe they can run this country? ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2026, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/15 "2026-03-25T23:41:10Z")
_For every complex problem, there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong. -_ **[H. L. Mencken](https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/h-l-mencken-quotes)** On a related note, here’s [an oft-linked cartoon](https://images.dailykos.com/images/1298601/story_image/types_of_libertarian.png?1715186465) explaining the different types of libertarians. [![](https://images.dailykos.com/images/1298601/story_image/types_of_libertarian.png?1715186465) ](https://images.dailykos.com/images/1298601/story_image/types_of_libertarian.png?1715186465) ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2026, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/16 "2026-03-26T00:20:08Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > There are countless other parties that are not the Republican Party. Why specifically did they pick the Libertarian Party? It’s got a reasonably clear platform, one centred around freedom, and people like that. I mean, it’s a really simplistic outlook, but lots of people supporting all parties have simplistic outlooks. If you have a particular issue that matters to you and you seem the two major parties as being permanently corrupted, maybe your issue is supported b y the Libertarian Party, which isn’t bound by the necessity of being realistic. Do you think there should be no immigration controls **at all** beyond not letting in violent criminals? The Libertarian Party supports that. Don’t like vaccine mandates? Vote Libertarian. End the War on Drugs completely? Vote Libertarian. Huge defense spending cuts? Libertarian. Also getting votes for their candidate in the 2024 Presidential election; the Green Party, Socialism and Liberation Party, and American Solidarity Party. I’d imagine it’s much the same. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2026, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/17 "2026-03-26T01:43:28Z")
Someone in my family votes Libertarian, in presidential general elections, as a protest vote against perceived hyper-partisanship among supporters of the major parties. She isn’t a registered Libertarian (something legally allowed in Pennsylvania), so I’m not sure she counts for the thread. You could say – why not then vote for another third party? In Pennsylvania, the Libertarians are the third party most consistently on the ballot. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2026, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/18 "2026-03-26T01:49:22Z")
Okay, the comic was on point and amusing. I’ll note that I, a registered Libertarian that _never_ votes for them belong in the “Left-Wing” section, shouting but never being heard, as we are (especially in Trump 1.0 and 2.0) outnumbered at _least_ 23-to-1, and likely more. More to the OP’s question: > [@Czarcasm](#): > > I want to know why I should vote “L”, not why I shouldn’t vote “R” or “D”. I don’t advise anyone to vote “L” when they can vote “D”, and encourage anyone who wants to vote “R” these days to vote “L”. The reasons, is as a small, ideologically splintered party, their ability to actually govern is zero. And the takeover of the party by Hard Right Capitalist Free Market types means it effectively operates as a wing of MAGA _anyway_. IE anything that splinters the at least semi-sane “D” should be avoided, and anything that takes votes away from the evil that is (R), or rather (M)aga is to be encouraged. [I have [a long post](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-parody-right-meme-about-extreme-libertarianism/997554/202) a while back in the Hyper-Libertarian / Capitalism thread about why I’m a registered Libertarian ] ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2026, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/19 "2026-03-26T02:06:40Z")
I’m pretty much a normal middle-of-the-road Democrat in terms of voting behavior, but I can definitely see the appeal. (FWIW, the issues where I tend to part company with other Democrats are mostly things with a clear freedom vs. safety tradeoff, like gun control and COVID restrictions.) I believe, in general, that 1) telling other people what to do _almost always_ engenders resentment and backlash, so you be very cautious about it even if you think what they are doing is reckless or stupid; and 2) the Bill of Rights, in particular, should be interpreted as broadly as possible. Where I think I part company with the libertarians is on money issues: taxation ain’t theft, societies with more public services are generally more pleasant places to live, and given that the rich tend to get richer and the poor to get poorer if there aren’t any counterbalancing forces to push them toward equilibrium, it’s fine and maybe necessary for the government to be that counterbalance. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769/20 "2026-03-26T03:08:23Z")
I was an active member of the Libertarian Party in the 70s, but not since then, so my information is out of date. But I think @RickJay had the basis right. On the economic side, government should be much smaller, with fewer regulations in many (but not all) areas, and therefore have lower taxes. On the civil liberties side, everything would be permitted that did not directly violate the rights of anyone else. Those very simplistic statements were fleshed out quite a bit by various writers. Authors of influence at that time were Milton Friedman, Friedrich Hayek, Ludwig von Mises, and Murray Rothbard. I don’t know how much influence those authors have these days. With the possible except of Rothbard (I don’t remember his work very well) these writers were mainly concerned with the economics side of things. Why vote L in this day and age? I can’t imagine a reason, even if they were still true to their founding principles, because as has rightly been said, they couldn’t govern. It would be better to steal their best ideas and somehow try to incorporate them into mainstream political life. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-what-the-appeal-is-about-the-libertarian-party/1028769.md?page=2)