2022 was the year it became clear as day that huge numbers of Americans feel deeply alienated from both political parties. There has never been an opportunity as ripe for a serious third party as now, and it's this insight and a whole lot of energy that libertarians should be bringing with them into 2023, by focusing specifically on local politics. At a time when Americans are disenchanted with the two-party system, the Libertarian Party has an opportunity to begin making inroads with voters, especially those who want the government to just leave them alone.
The tailwinds are behind us. The Mises Caucus, a group of Libertarian Party members, recently announced that it is launching what it's calling the Decentralized Revolution Campaign, in which it will focus primarily on local races in upcoming elections instead of emphasizing state and national elections. In the announcement, the party acknowledged its struggles to make a positive showing in national and state elections though noting that out of the 63 candidates running for local offices, 33 percent of them won.
But what would have happened if the 673 candidates that the Party ran in 2022 had been running for local offices instead of state or federal? If they shared the same 33 percent success rate, that would mean 224 races won.
Just imagine the impact that would have had.
It's something many libertarians are thinking about these days. The Mises Caucus is making a significant pivot, playing the long game instead of focusing on positions it cannot win yet at the national level. The plan is to win more political influence by working from the ground up and focus on building a nationwide network to influence the culture and get more libertarians in office.
After these candidates win their races, the plan is to use local politics to decrease taxes and spending while nullifying the more egregious policies coming from the federal government. In this way, the party hopes to use an approach that the more statist elements in American government might not see coming.
With America's political climate being what it is, the Libertarian Party might just have a chance to start garnering more influence if it is willing to put in the effort for the long haul. One of the worst weaknesses of the Republican Party is that it tends to fixate on short-term objectives without considering how it can position itself over the next 10 to 20 years.
Fortunately, libertarians do not seem to be making this same mistake.
The leadership of the party has taken a long hard look at the situation in which it finds itself politically, and according to Michael Heise, chair of the Mises Caucus, the influential radical wing of the Libertarian Party, they are developing a more realistic strategy for the future.
"By going local, we are going realistic," Heise told me. "By going local, we have power over the federal government that has been written out of history. We are reclaiming that power through the 10th amendment for the people of this country who are not being represented by this federal government."
If libertarians continue this initiative and take over a substantial number of local seats, they can gain more name recognition at the state level and eventually on the national stage.
One of the party's biggest hurdles is that most Americans don't know what they stand for and what policies they would support. Being that it is immensely difficult to get on the ballot in the upper levels of government and the media does not give much attention to third parties, many remain ignorant of the liberty-focused principles they espouse.
But when the party has more victories to point to along with examples of how liberty-minded officials have made a positive difference, they can chip away at the stranglehold that Democrats and Republicans have held over America's political infrastructure.
If all politics is local politics, that's where we should focus.
Jeff Charles is the host of "A Fresh Perspective" podcast and a contributor for RedState and Liberty Nation.
Correction: An earlier draft of this article misstated the relationship between the Mises Caucus and the Libertarian Party. We regret the error.
The views in this article are the writer's own.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
