Libertarian Gary Johnson Could Be President By Winning One State

Gary could become the third “President Johnson” in US history. It sounds incredible, but it’s quite possible, if he wins just one state. Most of us know that a candidate must get 270 votes in the Electoral College to win the presidency outright. Many of us know what happens if no one gets the 270: The choice is thrown into the House of Representatives.

The House is overwhelmingly Republican, and it would be the “lame duck” House that would make the decision, so even if there were a Democratic wave, giving Dems the House, it wouldn’t matter. On the other hand, Donald Trump seems to be alienating many Republicans, due to outrageous things he says—but also because he is not a loyal Republican—demonstrated by his current attempt to defeat Paul Ryan’s primary race.

If a large number of Republican lawmakers are turned off by November, they could shun Hillary Clinton, and still not make Trump president, according to a Pennsylvania newspaper.

All Johnson needs to do is win one state. I’ll repeat that, just ONE state. You may be thinking, “What is he talking about? Can’t this kid do math?” Well, fortunately, I can, and another fortunate thing is that if Johnson wins just one state, it will keep Clinton and Trump from the 270.

In an independent poll done in Utah, Johnson is at 26 percent compared to Clinton at 27 percent and Trump at 29 percent, and in a state that voted 69 percent for Ted Cruz in the Republican Primaries, Johnson has a good chance of winning the state. He has also seen a surge in his home state of New Mexico, and, with a little campaigning, outshining Trump and Clinton will be an easy feat.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if Johnson can achieve 15 percent in polls nationally, he can partake in the Presidential Debates against Clinton and Trump. In those debates, it’s anticipated that the first debate will have more viewers than the Super Bowl. That coverage will slingshot Johnson up in the polls.

“Wait a minute,” you ask, “what’s this about one state? It’s in the Twelfth Amendment.

In the twelfth amendment it states that “if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President.” In layman’s terms, each state, through its representatives in the House would cast one vote for the top three contenders for President.

The House of Representatives can decide, but they can only decide from those who actually won Electoral College votes. That’s why the writer mentioned Utah. That’s Mormon territory, and they didn’t take kindly to the way Trump spoke of their favorite son, Mitt Romney, and vice versa. That’s why Trump’s numbers are so low there. To repeat, Trump 29, Clinton 27, Johnson 26.

Of course that was before Johnson’s Mormon flap. He was arguing against the “politically correct” concept of hate crimes with the Washington Examiner.

I think this is analogous to hate crime. Convict me on the act of throwing a rock through somebody’s window. But if you’re going to convict me on my motivation for doing that, now you’re back to religious freedom. I mean under the guise of religious freedom, anybody can do anything. Back to Mormonism. . . Why shouldn’t somebody be able to shoot somebody else because their freedom of religion says that God has spoken to them and that they can shoot somebody dead.”

Johnson was referring to the early days of the Latter Day Saints, but it still didn’t go over well—and could cost him his only hope for the presidency.

However, Johnson may have a secret weapon: Mitt Romney. Rumors are flying that Romney will actually endorse Johnson, which would be the ultimate payback against Trump, who is counting on perennially Republican Utah to push him over the top.

Many voters feel that Gary Johnson is a better alternative to both Clinton and Trump and although he is running as a Libertarian, he may be getting some major backing in this race. It has been rumored that Mitt Romney, 2012 presidential candidate, is considering endorsing the Johnson/Weld ticket, and this could be huge. If Romney endorses Johnson, it’s possible that other politicians, such as Ted Cruz, will endorse them as well. According to the report, this would give more legitimacy to this third-party race and could really shake things up come November 8. . .

“In theory, if neither major party candidate wins 270 electoral votes, the election would be thrown to the House of Representatives for the first time since 1824. In a Republican controlled House, Gary Johnson, in theory, could be elected President with the lowest percentage of popular votes in American history, far less than John Quincy Adams’ 30.9 percent in 1824 or Abraham Lincoln’s 39.8 percent of the vote in 1860.”


Goethe Behr

Goethe Behr is a Contributing Editor and Moderator at Election Central. He started out posting during the 2008 election, became more active during 2012, and very active in 2016. He has been a political junkie since the 1950s and enjoys adding a historical perspective.

Email Updates

Want the latest Election Central news delivered to your inbox?

Leave a Comment