Jo Jorgensen
Jo Jorgensen | |
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Personal details | |
Born | Joanne Marie Jorgensen May 1, 1957 Libertyville, Illinois, U.S. |
Political party | Libertarian |
Residence | Greenville, South Carolina |
Education | Baylor University (BS) Southern Methodist University (MBA) Clemson University (PhD) |
Website | Campaign website |
Joanne Marie Jorgensen (born May 1, 1957) is an American academic and libertarian political activist. She is the Libertarian Party's nominee for president of the United States in the 2020 election.[1] Jorgensen was previously the Libertarian Party nominee for vice president in the 1996 U.S. presidential election as the running mate of Harry Browne.[2] She was also the Libertarian nominee for South Carolina's 4th congressional district in 1992, receiving 4,286 votes, or 2.2%.
Early life and career
Jorgensen was born in Libertyville, Illinois and raised in Grayslake.[3]
Jorgensen received a BS in Psychology at Baylor University in 1979 followed by a Master's in Administration from Southern Methodist University in 1980. She began her career at IBM working with computer systems, leaving there to become part owner and President of Digitech, Inc.[4] She received a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Clemson University in 2002.[5]
Jorgensen is a Psychology Senior Lecturer at Clemson University.[6]
1996 vice-presidential campaign
Prior to the 1996 United States presidential election, the Libertarian Party nominated Jorgensen to be the vice-presidential running mate of Harry Browne. Jorgensen was nominated on the first ballot with 92 percent of the vote.[7][8] She participated in a vice-presidential debate televised nationwide by C-SPAN on October 22, along with Herbert Titus of the Taxpayers Party and Mike Tompkins of the Natural Law Party.[9] Browne and Jorgensen received more than 485,000 votes, which at that time was the Libertarian Party's best performance since 1980.
2020 presidential campaign
On August 13, 2019, Jorgensen filed with the FEC to run for the Libertarian presidential nomination in the 2020 election.[10] She formally launched her campaign at the November 2, 2019 Libertarian Party of South Carolina Convention, before participating in the official South Carolina Libertarian presidential debate the same day.[11]
In the non-binding Libertarian primaries, Jorgensen was second in the cumulative popular vote, winning one of the 11 primaries.
On May 23, 2020, Jorgensen became the official Libertarian presidential nominee, making her the first woman to become the Libertarian nominee and the only female 2020 presidential candidate with ballot access to over 270 electoral votes.[12][13] That same day, Jorgensen's supporters repurposed Hillary Clinton's unofficial 2016 campaign slogan, "I'm With Her", to bring attention to alleged sexual assault victims of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and President Donald Trump. The slogan trended on Twitter that night and made national headlines.[14]
Political positions
Jorgensen supports individual liberties and considers shrinking the government a major priority. She favors non-interventionism, free and open trade with other nations and promoting nuclear power through deregulation in order to reduce CO2 emissions. In terms of healthcare, she supports a free-market healthcare system over the current system or single-payer.[15][16]
In a Libertarian presidential primary debate, Jorgensen said she would immediately stop construction on President Donald Trump's border wall and eliminate quotas limiting who can immigrate to the U.S. During another primary debate, Jorgensen said she would "open up the borders" and blamed anti-immigration sentiment on disproportionate media coverage of crimes by immigrants. She argued that immigration helps the economy and the blending of cultures was beneficial.[17][18][19]
She has said the government's response to COVID-19 is "the biggest assault on our liberties in our lifetime" due to both restrictions on individual behavior such as stay-at-home orders and corporate bailouts, which she sees as antithetical to free-market principles and biased towards the well-connected.[15][20][21]
See also
References
- ^ Winger, Richard (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Presidential Nomination on Fourth Vote". Ballot Access Date. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- ^ "Greenville Woman To Run For Vice President". Herald-Journal. Associated Press. July 11, 1996. pp. A3?. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ Susnjara, Bob (May 25, 2020). "Woman who grew up in Grayslake is Libertarian Party's presidential pick". Daily Herald. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
- ^ "Jo Jorgenson | Meet Our Faculty | Who We Are | Center for Corporate and Professional Development". Furman University.
- ^ "College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences | Faculty and Staff Profile". Clemson University. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Faculty – Department of Psychology". Clemson University.
- ^ Broder, David S. (July 7, 1996). "SEEKING POLITICAL BREAKTHROUGH, LIBERTARIANS PICK HARRY BROWNE". Washington Post.
- ^ "Libertarian Convention Acceptance Speeches". C-SPAN Video Library. July 6, 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
- ^ "Third Party Vice Presidential Debate". www.c-span.org.
- ^ "Jorgensen, Jo CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT ID: P00013524". FEC.gov. August 13, 2019.
- ^ Welch, Matt (November 7, 2019). "Candidates Vie to Represent the Libertarian Wing of the Libertarian Party". Reason. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ Brian Doherty (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Party Presidential Nomination". Reason.com. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- ^ Steinhauser, Paul (May 25, 2020). "Libertarians pick first female presidential nominee". Fox News. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
- ^ Obeidallah, Dean. "The truth about 'I'm with her'". www.cnn.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ a b "Jorgensen Brings Pragmatic Approach to Libertarian Presidential Campaign". The Amarillo Pioneer. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- ^ "Libertarian Presidential Contender Jo Jorgensen Wants To Combine Principle With Palatable Persuasion". Reason.com. May 21, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- ^ "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ "Final Libertarian Presidential Debate with John Stossel". Youtube.com. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
- ^ "Libertarian Party of Kentucky Presidential Debates: the Finale". Youtube. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
- ^ "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ "Final Libertarian Presidential Debate with John Stossel". Youtube.com. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
External links
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- 1957 births
- Living people
- 1996 United States vice-presidential candidates
- 20th-century American women politicians
- American libertarians
- American women academics
- American women business executives
- Baylor University alumni
- Businesspeople from South Carolina
- Candidates in the 2020 United States presidential election
- Clemson University alumni
- Clemson University faculty
- Female United States presidential candidates
- Female United States vice presidential candidates
- Libertarian Party (United States) presidential nominees
- Libertarian Party (United States) vice presidential nominees
- Organizational psychologists
- South Carolina Libertarians
- Southern Methodist University alumni
- Women in South Carolina politics