2020 Constitution Party presidential primaries

Last updated

2020 Constitution Party presidential primaries
Flag of the United States.svg
  2016 March 3–10, 2020 2024  

339½ delegates to the Constitution Party National Convention
  Don Blankenship Image (cropped).jpeg NOTA Option Logo 3x4.svg Blank.png
Candidate Don Blankenship Uncommitted Don J. Grundmann
Home state West Virginia n/a California
Contests won210
Popular vote641397256
Percentage33.25%20.59%13.28%

  Samm Tittle.jpg
CandidateSamm TittleCharles Kraut
Home state Texas Virginia
Contests won10
Popular vote199186
Percentage10.32%9.65%

ConstitutionPartyPresidentialPrimary2020.png
2020 CNC by first ballot.svg
2020 CNC by final ballot.svg

Previous Constitution Party nominee

Darrell Castle

Constitution Party nominee

Don Blankenship

The 2020 Constitution Party presidential primaries were a series of primary elections determining the allocation of delegates in the selection of the Constitution Party's presidential nominee in the 2020 United States presidential election. On May 2, 2020, the Constitution Party nominated Don Blankenship for president and William Mohr for vice-president. [1] Several state parties split from the national Constitution Party to nominate their own candidates. [2]

Contents

Background

Constitution Party nominees for president historically have received around 0.1% of the general election vote.[ citation needed ] In 2016 with attorney Darrell Castle as its nominee, the party reached a milestone, receiving over 200,000 votes for president for the first time. [3] During the early months of 2019, there was some consternation among Constitution Party members over a perceived lack of candidates for the nomination. [4]

State affiliate disputes

After the Constitution Party chose Blankenship as its presidential nominee, there was substantial tension among several state affiliates of the Constitution Party over nominating Blankenship, who has been convicted of conspiring to willfully violate mine safety and health standards in relation to the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster. [5] The same day that Blankenship was chosen as the nominee, the Constitution Party of Virginia broke with the national party, instead choosing to back Libertarian Justin Amash for the presidency. [5]

On May 13, 2020, the Constitution Party of New Mexico also broke with the national CP, giving Blankenship's fellow candidate Samm Tittle their ballot line. [6] Tittle was also endorsed by the Virginia Party after Amash withdrew from the presidential race. [2] The Constitution Party of Idaho was reportedly considering not nominating William Mohr for vice president, and instead choosing their own vice presidential nominee, but they eventually acquiesced and nominated him for vice president. [7] [8]

Candidates

Nominee

2020 Constitution Party ticket [1]
Don Blankenship William Mohr
for Presidentfor Vice President
Don Blankenship Image (cropped).jpeg
Blank.png
Coal executiveChairman of the
U.S. Taxpayers Party of Michigan
641 votes
2 states won (ID, MO)
Don Blankenship 2020 presidential campaign logo.jpg
Campaign

Defeated at convention

The following candidates received at least 5% of the vote at the 2020 Constitution Party national convention. [1]

NameBornExperienceHome
state
Campaign
Announcement date
Popular voteContests wonRef
March 5, 1952
(age 72)
Oakland, California
Chiropractor
Chairman of the Constitution Party of California
August 30, 2019
FEC filing [9]
2560 [10] [11]
El Paso, Texas Independent Candidate for President in 2012 and 2016 Flag of Texas.svg
Texas
January 28, 2020
FEC filing [12]
1991
(NM)
[13] [11]
New York Financial adviser and author Flag of Virginia.svg
Virginia
October 29, 2019
FEC filing [14]
1860 [15]

Debates

Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
C2
Boise
Red pog.svg
C3
Chicago
Sites of the Constitution Party presidential debates (online debates not shown)
No.DateTime
(ET)
PlaceSponsor(s)ModeratorsRef
1February 25, 2020TBDOnline Constitution Party of Texas Scott Copeland
Ricardo Davis
Randy Stufflebeam
[11]
2February 29, 2020TBD Boise, Idaho Constitution Party of Idaho TBD [16]
3March 4, 2020TBD Hilton Chicago,
Chicago, Illinois
Free & Equal Elections Foundation Christina Tobin [17]
4April 1, 2020TBDOnlineVision 20/20Randy Stufflebeam [18]
Debates among candidates for the 2020 Constitution Party U.S. presidential nomination
DateStateHostParticipants
 P  Participant.  A  Absent.  O  Out of race (exploring, suspended, or not yet entered)BlankenshipCummingsGrundmannMyers [lower-alpha 1] KrautTittleOthers
February 25, 2020 [11] OnlineConstitution Party of TexasAPPAPPnone
February 29, 2020 [16] Boise, Idaho Constitution Party of Idaho PPPPPPnone
March 4, 2020 [17] Chicago, Illinois Free & Equal Elections Foundation AAAPPAnone
April 1, 2020 [18] OnlineVision 20/20PPPAPPnone

Timeline

Active campaigns
Withdrawn campaigns
Midterm elections
North Carolina primary
National emergency
declared due to
COVID-19
Constitution National Convention
General election
Don Blankenship2020 Constitution Party presidential primaries

2019

2020

Primary and caucus calendar

DatePrimaries/Caucuses/Conventions
March 3 North Carolina primary
March 10 Idaho primary
Missouri primary
March 20 Wyoming primary
April 18 South Carolina primary
April 25 Utah primary
May 13 New Mexico primary

Ballot access

Filing for the primaries began in August 2019. Green check.svg indicates that the candidate was on the ballot for the upcoming primary contest and Dark Red x.svg indicates that the candidate did not appear on the ballot in that state's contest.

Primaries and Caucuses
State/
Territory
Date
Blankenship
Grundmann
Kraut
Tittle
Cummings
Myers
Ref
NC Mar 3Yes check.svgDark Red x.svgYes check.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svg
ID Mar 10Yes check.svgYes check.svgYes check.svgYes check.svgYes check.svgYes check.svg
MO Mar 10Yes check.svgYes check.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svg
UT Apr 25Dark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svg [19]
NM May 13Yes check.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svgYes check.svgDark Red x.svgDark Red x.svg [20]

    Results

    DateContestPopular vote [lower-alpha 2] Source
    Don Blankenship Don J. GrundmannSheila “Samm” TittleCharles KrautDaniel Clyde CummingsJ. R. MyersNo Preference
    Uncommitted
    March 3 North
    Carolina
    102
    (36.30%)
    62
    (22.06%)
    117
    (41.64%)
    March 10 Idaho 250
    (27.59%)
    88
    (9.71%)
    195
    (21.52%)
    124
    (13.69%)
    133
    (14.68%)
    116
    (12.80%)
    Missouri 287
    (39.05%)
    168
    (22.86%)
    280
    (38.10%)
    May 15 New
    Mexico
    2
    (33.33%)
    4
    (66.67%)
    Popular vote
    (Percentage)
    641
    (33.25%)
    256
    (13.28%)
    199
    (10.32%)
    186
    (9.65%)
    133
    (6.90%)
    116
    (6.02%)
    397
    (20.59%)

    North Carolina

    North Carolina Constitution Party presidential primary, March 3, 2020 [21]
    CandidatePopular vote
    CountPercentage
    America Symbol.svg Uncommitted 11741.64%
    Don Blankenship 10236.30%
    Charles Kraut6222.06%
    Total:281100%

    Idaho

    Idaho Constitution Party presidential primary, March 10, 2020 [22]
    CandidatePopular vote
    CountPercentage
    America Symbol.svg Don Blankenship 25027.59%
    Sheila “Samm” Tittle19521.52%
    Daniel Clyde Cummings13314.68%
    Charles Kraut12413.69%
    J. R. Myers [lower-alpha 1] 11612.80%
    Don J. Grundmann889.71%
    Total:906100%

    Missouri

    Missouri Constitution Party presidential primary, March 10, 2020 [23]
    CandidatePopular vote
    CountPercentage
    America Symbol.svg Don Blankenship 28739.05%
    Uncommitted 28038.10%
    Don J. Grundmann16822.86%
    Total:735100%

    New Mexico

    New Mexico Constitution Party presidential primary, May 15, 2020 [20]
    CandidatePopular vote
    CountPercentage
    America Symbol.svg Sheila “Samm” Tittle466.67%
    Don Blankenship 233.33%
    Total:6100%

    See also

    National Conventions

    Presidential primaries

    Notes

    1. 1 2 J. R. Myers is a member of the Life and Liberty Party, but was on the ballot for the Constitution Party primary in Idaho.
    2. In the below table, blank cells indicate the candidate was not a ballot option or approved write-in candidate. Shaded cells indicate withdrawn candidates.

    Related Research Articles

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution Party (United States)</span> American political party

    The Constitution Party, named the U.S. Taxpayers' Party until 1999, is an ultra-conservative political party in the United States that promotes a religiously conservative interpretation of the principles and intents of the United States Constitution. The party platform is based on originalist interpretations of the Constitution and shaped by principles which it believes were set forth in the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Constitution and the Bible.

    The Constitution Party National Convention is held by the United States Constitution Party every two to four years. As of April 2024, there have been nine.

    This article contains lists of official third-party and independent candidates associated with the 2012 United States presidential election.

    The 2012 Libertarian National Convention, in which delegates of the Libertarian Party (LP) chose the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2012 general election, was held May 2–6, 2012, in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Red Rock Resort Spa and Casino. Former Governor of New Mexico Gary Johnson won the presidential nomination on the first ballot. Retired California state court judge Jim Gray won the vice presidential nomination, also on the first ballot. The convention also chose to replace most of the Libertarian National Committee party officers and members-at-large.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Libertarian National Convention</span>

    The 2016 Libertarian National Convention was the gathering at which delegates of the Libertarian Party chose the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2016 national election. The party selected Gary Johnson, a former Governor of New Mexico, as its presidential candidate, with Bill Weld, a former Governor of Massachusetts as his running mate. The convention was held from May 26–30, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.

    This article contains lists of official and potential third-party and independent candidates associated with the 2016 United States presidential election.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Green Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2016 Green Party presidential primaries were a series of primaries, caucuses and state conventions in which voters elected delegates to represent a candidate for the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States at the 2016 Green National Convention. The primaries, held in numerous states on various dates from January to July 2016, featured elections publicly funded and held as an alternative ballot, concurrent with the Democratic and Republican primaries, and elections privately funded by the Green Party, held non-concurrently with the major party primaries. Over 400 delegates to the Green National Convention were elected in these primaries, with a candidate needing a simple majority of these delegates to become the party's nominee for president.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Libertarian Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2016 Libertarian Party presidential primaries and caucuses allowed electors to indicate non-binding preferences for the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate. These differed from the Republican or Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses in that they did not appoint delegates to represent a candidate at the party's convention to select the party's nominee for the United States presidential election. The party's nominee for the 2016 presidential election was chosen directly by registered delegates at the 2016 Libertarian National Convention, which ran from May 26 to 30, 2016. The delegates nominated former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson for president and former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld for vice president.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Republican Party presidential primaries</span>

    Presidential primaries and caucuses of the Republican Party took place in many U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories from February 3 to August 11, 2020, to elect most of the 2,550 delegates to send to the Republican National Convention. Delegates to the national convention in other states were elected by the respective state party organizations. The delegates to the national convention voted on the first ballot to select Donald Trump as the Republican Party's nominee for president of the United States in the 2020 election, and selected Mike Pence as the vice-presidential nominee.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries and caucuses were a series of electoral contests to indicate non-binding preferences for the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate in the 2020 United States presidential election. These differed from the Republican or Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses in that they do not appoint delegates to represent a candidate at the party's convention to select the party's presidential nominee.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Green Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2020 Green Party presidential primaries were a series of primary elections, caucuses and state conventions in which voters elected delegates to represent a candidate for the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States at the 2020 Green National Convention. The primaries, were held in numerous U.S. states on various dates from early spring into early summer of 2020, and featured elections publicly funded, concurrent with the Democratic Party and Republican Party primaries, and elections privately funded by the Green Party, held non-concurrently with the major party primaries.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Third-party and independent candidates for the 2020 United States presidential election</span>

    This article lists third-party and independent candidates, also jointly known as minor candidates, associated with the 2020 United States presidential election.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States presidential election in Alaska</span>

    The 2020 United States presidential election in Alaska took place on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states and the District of Columbia participated. Alaska voters chose three electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Republican President Donald Trump and his running mate, incumbent Vice President Mike Pence, against Democratic challenger and former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate, United States Senator Kamala Harris of California. The Libertarian, Green, Constitution, and Alliance Party nominees were also on the ballot, as was an Independent candidate.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Libertarian National Convention</span> Political event

    The 2020 Libertarian National Convention delegates selected the Libertarian Party nominees for president and vice president in the 2020 United States presidential election. Primaries were held, but were preferential in nature and did not determine delegate allocation. The convention was originally scheduled to be held from May 21 to May 25 at the JW Marriott Austin luxury hotel in downtown Austin, Texas. On April 26, all reservations at the JW Marriott Austin were canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the convention oversight committee to seek another venue for a possible July date.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Jo Jorgensen 2020 presidential campaign</span> American political campaign

    The 2020 presidential campaign of Jo Jorgensen was formally launched on November 2, 2019, at the South Carolina Libertarian Party convention. Jorgensen had previously been the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nominee in 1996, when she ran on a ticket with author Harry Browne. Currently a senior lecturer of psychology at Clemson University, Jorgensen had owned a software company at the time of her 1996 vice presidential candidacy.

    The Green presidential debates are a series of political debates between the Green candidates for president in the United States 2020 presidential election.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Libertarian Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2024 Libertarian Party presidential primaries and caucuses were a series of current electoral contests to indicate non-binding preferences for the Libertarian Party (LP) presidential nominee in the 2024 United States presidential election. These differed from the Republican or Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses in that they do not appoint delegates to represent a candidate at the party's convention to select the party's presidential nominee.

    This article lists third party and independent candidates, also jointly known as minor candidates, associated with the 2024 United States presidential election.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Libertarian Party presidential primaries</span>

    The 2008 Libertarian Party presidential primaries allowed voters to indicate non-binding preferences for the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate. These differed from the Republican or Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses in that they did not appoint delegates to represent a candidate at the party's convention to select the party's nominee for the United States presidential election. The party's nominee for the 2008 presidential election was chosen directly by registered delegates at the 2008 Libertarian National Convention, which ran from May 22 to 26, 2008. The delegates nominated former congressman Bob Barr for president and media personality Wayne Allyn Root for vice president.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Constitution National Convention</span>

    Although four states did hold bona fide presidential primaries for the Constitution Party's 2020 candidates, no such primaries were held in any state for the party's 2024 candidates. This page is a summary of delegation votes from the April 27 nominating convention in Salt Lake City, Utah.

    References

    1. 1 2 3 Winger, Richard (May 2, 2020). "Constitution Party Nominates Don Blankenship for President on Second Ballot". Ballot Access News. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
    2. 1 2 Winger, Richard (July 26, 2020). "Virginia Constitution Party Nominates Sheila Tittle for President". Ballot Access News. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
    3. "2016 National Results - Constitution Party". Constitution Party. May 29, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
    4. Myers, J.R. (March 15, 2020). "JR Myers: Where Are The Constitution Party 2020 POTUS Candidates?". Independent Political Report. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
    5. 1 2 "Virginia Constitution Party Rejects Nomination of Blankenship, Wants Libertarian Justin Amash To Be Its Presidential Candidate". American Third Party Report. May 2, 2020. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
    6. "New Mexico Constitution Party Rejects National CP Nominee". American Third Party Report. May 13, 2020. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
    7. Whitley, Floyd W. (May 14, 2020). "CP-Idaho will still choose our own VP candidate". American Third Party Report. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
    8. Winger, Richard (August 1, 2020). "Idaho Constitution Party Nominates Don Blankenship for President". Ballot Access News. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
    9. 1 2 "GRUNDMANN FOR PRESIDENT". FEC.gov. August 30, 2019. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
    10. "Fight the Power: The official site of Don J. Grundmann for President". Fightthepower.org.
    11. 1 2 3 4 5 Stufflebeam, Randall (February 25, 2020). "Texas Constitution Party 2020 Presidential Debate". YouTube. Constitution Party of Texas. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
    12. "TITTLE, SHEILA "SAMM"". Federal Electoral Commission. January 28, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
    13. "Samm Tittle's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
    14. 1 2 "Statement of Candidacy" (PDF). docquery.fec.gov. 2019.
    15. "About Charles Kraut". Charles W. Kraut 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
    16. 1 2 3 "Idaho Constitution Party sets presidential debate in Boise on Feb. 29". Idaho County Free Press. February 26, 2020. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
    17. 1 2 3 "FREE & EQUAL ELECTIONS' OPEN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE". Free & Equal. Archived from the original on September 13, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
    18. 1 2 3 Stufflebeam, Randall (April 1, 2020). "Debate 1 - The Constitution - Part 1". YouTube. Vision 20/20. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
    19. "Constitution Party of Utah Fails to Attract Any Presidential Candidates".
    20. 1 2 "New Mexico Constitution Party Rejects National CP Nominee".
    21. North Carolina State Board of Elections. "03/03/2020 Unofficial Local Election Results - Statewide" . Retrieved March 4, 2020.
    22. State of Idaho Elections Department. "Election Night Results" . Retrieved March 10, 2020.
    23. Missouri Secretary of State. "State of Missouri - Election Night" . Retrieved March 10, 2020.