Vivek Ramaswamy says he is not exploring Libertarian presidential bid

DES MOINES — Vivek Ramaswamy has been courting Iowa Libertarians in his bid for the GOP presidential nomination, but he denied he is considering a run for president on the Libertarian ticket.

Members of Ramaswamy’s campaign met with the Polk County Libertarians earlier this week, seeking Libertarian support. But at an event in Muscatine on Friday, the Ohio biotech entrepreneur said he is not considering a third-party bid for president.

“We are bringing Libertarians into the Republican America First movement,” he said. “Absolutely, we are talking to non-traditional Republican caucusgoers.

“I am going to college campuses, and we are reaching out to communities that have not been traditionally part of the Republican Party. I am running for president as a Republican. I will not be running for president on a different ticket.”

Ramaswamy’s campaign has had staffers attend Libertarian events to encourage them to register as Republicans and support Ramaswamy in the presidential caucuses, spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed, but she said Ramaswamy is not considering a run under that party’s banner.

McLaughlin said about half of those attending Ramaswamy campaign events are traditional Republicans while the other half have never caucused before.

“So that’s leaving a whole 50 percent that is either Libertarian, politically unaffiliated, independent, disaffected Democrats,” she said. “So there’s a whole swath of people that are not caucusing for Republicans that we’re trying to bring over.”

Ramaswamy has held dozens of campaign stops across the state in recent weeks, but he’s struggled to drum up support from Iowa voters according to recent polling. A recent Iowa State University poll conducted by Civiqs pegged his support at 6 percent among likely Republican caucusgoers.

Libertarians encourage participation in their caucuses

In a statement Friday, the Libertarian Party of Iowa encouraged voters to participate in its caucuses and make their vote from among the party’s primary candidates. Candidates running for the party’s presidential nomination include former Georgia U.S. Senate candidate Chase Oliver, Mike ter Maat of Florida and Joshua Smith of Iowa.

“At a time when entrenched duopolies often dominate the narrative, the (Libertarian Party of Iowa) stands firm in its commitment to fostering an environment where Americans have a genuine array of choices,” Libertarian Party of Iowa Chairman Jules Cutler said in a statement.

The Libertarian Party achieved major party status in Iowa after the 2022 election, and it will hold its own organizing caucuses Jan. 15, the same night Republicans and Democrats hold their caucuses.

According to the Iowa Secretary of State's Office, there are 8,471 active registered Libertarians in the state and more than 7,000 inactive Libertarian voters.

While attendees can cast a vote for a candidate at the Libertarian caucuses, the result is not binding, and the party's nominee is chosen at its national convention in May.

Ryan Kurt, chairman of the Polk County Libertarians, said he spoke with Ramaswamy at an event last week focused on carbon capture pipelines and suggested he run as a Libertarian.

Kurt said Ramaswamy told him, "Don't count me out" of the Libertarian nomination, "as if it was something that was in his range of options, but not necessarily actively pursuing."

But in a meeting with Ramaswamy's staff, they made it clear Ramaswamy is not planning to switch parties, he said.

Kurt said he agrees that Libertarians should participate in the Libertarian caucuses. He also doesn’t think Ramaswamy would be successful as a Libertarian candidate.

"I'm for whatever advances liberty the most, and right now I think that's going to be getting the best possible Libertarian candidate on the ticket," he said.

Two-party system a ‘sad reality’

Ramaswamy, running on a message of unifying disparate political groups around anti-establishment and ultraconservative policy positions, has frequently criticized Republican Party leadership like Ronna McDaniel, the national party’s chair.

Ramaswamy has said he voted for a Libertarian candidate in the 2004 presidential election in opposition to both Republican President George W. Bush and Democratic nominee John Kerry. He did not vote again until 2020, when he voted for Donald Trump.

He often has contrasted himself with the Republican Party and said he is using the ticket only as a “vehicle” to advance his agenda, which he sees as transcending party lines.

At the carbon capture pipeline event, Ramaswamy told reporters that he was running as a Republican, in part, because the two major parties are the only viable path to becoming president.

“The sad reality is that we have a system that is baked by the establishment, that I don’t think is serving the people of the country,” he said. “... If you’re really serious about running for president, I don’t think that there’s a viable independent route to do it.”

David Hotle of the Muscatine Journal contributed to this report.