A Brief History of the Libertarian Party of New Mexico

The Libertarian Party of New Mexico was founded on June 27, 1972. The party held its first convention on July 22, 1972.

The party may have been formed by members of the University of New Mexico Students of Objectivism Club. The first LPNM party chair was Diana Amsden.

The LPNM is the state affiliate of the Libertarian Party.

Throughout most of its history, the LPNM operated as a minor party in the state. The party frequently ran candidates for local and state office, but none were ever elected.

Libertarian Party voter registrations in New Mexico hovered around 5,000 until 2016, when former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson ran for President of the United States on a Libertarian ticket. Since that time, Libertarian registrations have increased at a rapid rate. As of April, 2018, the New Mexico Secretary of State reported a total of more than 8,000 registered Libertarians.

In January, 2018, the Libertarian Party of New Mexico gained major party status.

On March 4, 2018, the LPNM held its first-ever nominating convention for candidates for state and federal office.

On June 5, 2018, Libertarian voters in New Mexico first participated in a primary election.