October 1, 2011
October 1, 2011. Danville, VA. With all the media attention on the Republican Presidential primary and President Obama’s record breaking fundraising, little notice has been made of the small army of independent candidates running for President in 2012. Some are sincerely dedicated to the effort. Some are spreading a certain message. And some haven’t announced if they’re running or not. Ready or not, here are the candidates running as independents for President in 2012.
Andre Barnett, nominated by the Reform Party for President
Last month, we at Whiteout Press invited all prospective independent candidates for President to submit their names for a future voters guide. We also asked our readers, predominantly independent voters in their own right, who they want to see run for President as an independent. Here are those individuals, ordered by the number of the times their name was submitted while our survey was open.
The goal of this particular article isn’t to provide detailed positions and biographies, as much as it is to give our readers the opportunity to meet each of the candidates for themselves. Watch for future follow-up articles from Whiteout Press following their campaigns. We at Whiteout Press wish each of them the best of luck. Third Parties have their own individual primary processes to determine their nomination for the November 2012 elections. We will cover those candidates in future articles. The below candidates will all be running in November against each of the parties’ Presidential nominations, and each other.
2012 Independent Presidential Candidates
Ken Grammer
Virginia
Conservative libertarian. IT Specialist. Attended UAB. Married with 3 kids. Top issues include jobs, budget reform, social issues, foreign policy.
Website
Campaign officially ended 9/29/11.
Ron Paul
Texas
Republican/Libertarian. Current Republican candidate for President. To run as an independent, he would need to drop out in time to declare his candidacy as an independent candidate individually in all 50 states. Dates and laws vary by state.
Mark B. Graham
West Virginia
Citizens Party. Married with 3 kids. Computer technician/programmer. Supports Fair Trade, America first, balanced budget, separation of Church and state.
Bill Nees
Georgia
Independent Statesman Party. Write-in campaign. Supports equal representation and justice for all, accountability and oversight, libertarian.
Andre Barnett
New York
Christian conservative. Injured Army veteran. 35 years old. Entrapaneur, IT specialist. Supports “truth, fairness and faith”, abolishing the FED, cutting taxes, Fair Trade, pro-Israel.
Jesse Ventura
Minnesota
Independence Party. Claims he’s not running. Former MN Governor. Libertarian, America first, Fair trade, equal justice, separation of church and state. Web link is to the draft Ventura Facebook page.
Jon Huntsman
Utah
Republican. Former US Ambassador and UT Governor. Current Republican Presidential candidate. To run as an independent for President, he would need to drop out in time to register as an independent candidate for President in each individual state. Laws and rules vary in each state.
Jon Stewart
New York
Liberal. Television talk show host. All indications are he’s not running. Web link is to the draft Stewart Facebook page.
Mad Max Riekse
Michigan
Citizens Party. Poli-Sci Masters from Western MI Univ. Retired Detroit public school teacher. US Army veteran. Supports veterans, education reform, campaign finance reform, Fair Trade, America first, pro-Tibet.
Anthony Tubbs
Louisiana
Independent Party. No information available.
Website
Bernie Sanders
Vermont
Independent. Current independent US Senator from Vermont. Socialist. No information whether or not he’s running. Web link is to a draft Sanders for President group.
Website
Bill Maher
California
Television talk show host. No indication that he’s running. Web link is to a draft Maher for President Facebook page.
Dennis Kucinich
Ohio
Democrat. Current US Congressman from Ohio. No indication that he’s running for President.
Gary A. Anderson
Florida
Whig Party. Current candidate for US Senate in Florida. “Principals before party.” No indication that he will run for President instead.
Michael Stephen Levinson
Florida
Independent. Write-in candidate. Prophit for peace. Supports printing money and making military uniforms with hemp, campaign finance reform, universal healthcare and is pro-choice for religious reasons.
Merlin Miller
Tennessee
American Third Position. Independent film maker Americana-Pictures.com, Masters in Cinema/TV from USC, graduated from West Point Military Academy as did 3 of his 4 children. Supports traditional and Christian values.
Robert Manis
Montana
Independent. Constitutionalist, libertarian. Small business owner. Supports veterans. Pro 2nd Amendment, anti-corruption. Supports more accountability of government officials and pay cuts for Congress.
That concludes the list of independent candidates for US President in 2012. With this much time before the general election, individuals will come and go from this list. We at Whiteout Press will do our best to keep voters informed. Stay tuned.
