By Ashley Hungerford
Assistant State & Local Editor
9 November 2006

The rainy weather on Election Day Tuesday didn’t stop voters in Lee County from going to the polls.

Of the registered voters in Lee County, 26,768 votes were cast at the polls. Lee County Probate Judge Bill English said there was a 37.7 percent turnout of registered voters, just below his 39.5 percent forecast.

English said he didn’t see the rain as a deterrent to voters. He said many voters rushed to the polls early to beat the rain. When the weather cleared up in the afternoon, he said there was still a steady stream at the polls.

As the results rolled in Tuesday night, it was clear Lee County voted many incumbents into another term.

While Mike Hubbard won the AL House 79 election and Carolyn Ellis came in a not-too-close second, Dick Clark outperformed both of them by one important measure: most votes earned per campaign dollar spent.

Based on the most recent campaign finance filings, these are the standings for dollars spent per vote in the AL House 79 race:

*Dick Clark - $10.13/vote
*Mike Hubbard - $43.58/vote
*Carolyn Ellis - $69.46/vote

Thanks go out to all of the campaign's supporters, both those who volunteered their time and those who made their resources available to allow the campaign to reach as many citizens as possible with the message of liberty. Please continue to support the Libertarian Party of Alabama, the United States Libertarian Party, and the Auburn University Libertarians.

Listeners tuning in to WANI 1400 AM on Wednesday morning got a chance to hear about their Libertarian option in the AL House 79 race as the host of Auburn-Opelika This Morning interviewed Dick Clark.

Clark discussed his policy positions, including increasing restrictions on Eminent Domain takings and lowering taxes and state expenditures. He also discussed the basic tenets of the Libertarian political philosophy and how he came to be a Libertarian over the Summer of 2001.

If you missed the first airing of the interview, be sure to listen via the CitizenClark.com multimedia archive or tune in to WANI Thursday morning at 6:30am.

Dick Clark

Age: 25

Education: B.A. English (Technical & Professional Communications), minor in Philosophy, Auburn University, December 2004

Experience: Librarian, copy editor, archivist at local non-profit economics institute (2004-Present); Chairman, Libertarian Party of Alabama (2006-Present); Libertarian Candidate, Alabama Public Service Commission, Place 1 (2002); Co-founder, OnTarget Technologies (computer hard-ware and networking company; 1998-1999)

Q: Why should the citizens of our district vote for you?

People in Alabama's 79th district desire the ability to work hard and to reap the benefits of their labors. Supporting my candidacy means supporting a genuinely, drastically lower tax level and smaller government across the board. My constituents can count on me to be a tireless opponent of any state measure seeking to redistribute their hard-earned money through state bureaucracies. Our area is strong in education, strong in worker productivity, and has a generally rising standard of living. People in District 79 do not need the politicians in Montgomery telling them how to spend their money, and I will fight to ensure that the politicians don't get additional opportunities to do just that.

Amy Weaver / Staff Writer
October 27, 2006

The political debate at Auburn University Thursday night between the College Democrats and College Libertarians started with an apology.

Brandon Costerison, campaign director for the Democrats, apologized for “not being able to offer a comprehensive debate” before the Nov. 7 election. Both the Libertarians and Democrats were unable to convince the College Republicans to participate.

Republican President Kristy Cottrell has said her group is against a three-party debate because the party felt the three-party debate last year didn’t run well, and the party didn’t feel an urgency to debate the Libertarians before the election when the Libertarians don’t have a candidate on a statewide ballot.

State & Local
By Trey Wood
Staff Writer

Tuesday night’s political candidate’s forum — sponsored by the Auburn League of Women’s Voters, the Opelika Chamber of Commerce and the Auburn Chamber of Commerce — allowed participating candidates the chance to speak directly to their constituents.

“We basically just wanted to provide a neutral forum in which candidates could convey to the public what their platforms are and give the public a chance to hear what they have to say,” said Lucy LaMar of the Opelika Chamber of Commerce.

The sections, which included vying candidates for the Lee County Board of Education, Lee County Commissions, the Alabama House of Representatives and the Alabama Senate, were heated. Besides opening and closing statements, each participant was allowed one minute to answer each question.

At the 17 October Lee County Candidates Forum, Libertarian Candidate Dick Clark for AL House #79 joined other state legislative candidates on the stage to better inform Lee County citizens of their electoral choices this November. Each candidate was instructed to introduce him or herself, and then all of the candidates responded to a series of questions asked by Dr. Steven Brown of Auburn University's Political Science department. After the questions segment, each candidate then delivered one last appeal for votes before the legislative candidates portion of the event ended.

Listed below are the questions asked of the candidates followed by links to audio recordings of Clark's answers to each one. (Special thanks to Dr. Brown for providing the public with the exact wording of the questions.)

Jessica R. Elmore / Staff Writer
October 18, 2006

Dick Clark, the Libertarian candidate for Alabama House District 79, was the first candidate to draw an eruption of clapping from his supporters during Tuesday’s Lee County Candidate’s Forum at Opelika Middle School. Clark, who spoke very quickly during his three-minute pause-free introduction, informed the audience of his qualifications, constituent accessibility and possible office priorities—points each candidate was asked to address.

“I want to put my money where my mouth is and truly be a public servant,” Clark said.

An available parking spot was rare as approximately 150 people took a red seat in OMS’ auditorium on Denson Drive. Hosted by the League of Women Voters, the Auburn Chamber of Commerce and the Opelika Chamber of Commerce, the forum was facilitated by a man who says he always votes the person, not the party.

Amy Weaver / Staff Writer
October 12, 2006

The controversy between student political organizations at Auburn University continued Tuesday night as the College Libertarians tried to participate in the Republican-sponsored nonpartisan voter registration concert on the lawn of Cater Hall.

Grace Toles said she and other members of the College Libertarians attended the event with the intention of registering voters for the upcoming election.

But once they began to assemble their table and campaign signs, they drew attention from members of the College Republicans and the Auburn Police Division.

Toles, president of the Libertarians, said because the lawn was riddled with signs for Republican candidates the Libertarians felt it was right to follow suit.

Amy Weaver / Staff Writer
October 11, 2006

A debate scheduled for Tuesday between the College Republicans and College Democrats at Auburn University is not going to happen as planned.

Brandon Costerison, campaign director for the College Democrats, said his organization for ethical reasons has pulled out of what has become an exclusive two-party debate. He said the Democrats will take part only if the Republicans allow the College Libertarians to participate or agree to debate the Libertarians before the Nov. 7 election.

"The goal of our organization is to educate voters, and that cannot be done in the format of the debate that we had been forced into," said College Democrat President Jeffrey Ioimo.