Constitution Proposal

The Constitution and Bylaws Committee was formed following the 2007 LPO Convention. The purpose of this committee was to investigate how the LPO could be structured to become more effective and prepared for growth. This page contains the Constitution that is being submitted by this committee for adoption by the members of the LPO, in conjunction with a set of new Bylaws.

This is proposal number 2008-C1. This proposal shall be considered as a package with proposal 2008-B1.

Preamble

We the members of the Libertarian Party in Ohio, in order to nominate, endorse, support, and elect candidates, and to support issues best representative of the ideals of libertarianism, do ordain and establish this Constitution and hereby establish the Libertarian Party of Ohio (“the Party”) in perpetuity.

Article I - Constitution and Laws

Section 1. Nothing herein shall conflict with the Constitution of the United States of America, the laws of the United States of America, the Constitution of the State of Ohio, and the laws of the State of Ohio.

Section 2. Any matter which is determined to conflict with Section 1 shall be of no force and effect. All constitutional provisions and laws of the United States of America and of the State of Ohio are hereby incorporated by reference and made a part hereof, particularly those elements of Ohio Revised Code Title 35 that apply to major political parties.

Section 3. Each clause of this Constitution and associated Bylaws shall be considered separately and the illegality or enforceability of any one clause shall not effect any other clause.

Article II - Membership

Section 1. No person may be denied membership in the Party unless that individual cannot affirm the following pledge “I hereby certify that I do not believe in or advocate the initiation of force as a means of achieving political or social goals.”

Article III - Internal officer and delegate qualifications

Section 1. No person may receive endorsement or vote on any motion, resolution, nomination, or internal election at any caucus, convention, meeting, or conference of the Party who does not affirm the Constitution of the United States of America and the Constitution, Bylaws, and Guiding Principles of the Libertarian Party of Ohio.

Section 2. No person may be eligible for elected office within the Party who is an active officer, candidate, or elected official of another political party within the 30 days prior to such an election.

Article IV - Central Committee

Section 1. The controlling Committee of the Party shall be called the State Central Committee of the Party (hereafter referred to as the Central Committee).

A. In all matters and to the extent possible the Central Committee shall comply entirely with the laws of the State of Ohio as they apply to major political parties.

B. The Central Committee shall be elected in accordance with the Party Bylaws.

Section 2. Each newly elected Central Committee shall elect from its own members such officers as specified by Party Bylaws and the Ohio Revised Code. This election shall be held separately for each office and by secret ballot.

Section 3. The Central Committee shall meet at the time and place determined by the Chair of the Central Committee.

Section 4. The Central Committee shall retain the following powers:

A. Creation of an Audit Committee, with oversight by the Committee treasurer.

B. Organizing such Conventions as permitted by Article VII of this Constitution.

C. Election of the Executive Committee as defined in Article V.

D. Establish all compensation to staff and officers of the Party.

Article V - Executive Committee

Section 1. A State Executive Committee (herein referred to as Executive Committee) shall be elected from Party members by each newly elected Central Committee as specified by Party Bylaws and the Ohio Revised Code. This election shall be held by secret ballot.

A. The Executive Committee shall consist of a Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and three members of the Central Committee.

B. The Central Committee shall confer upon the Executive Committee all duties and responsibilities of the Central Committee, save those enumerated in Article IV Section 4.

Section 2. The officers the Executive Committee shall:

A. be, and remain throughout their term of office, members of the Party.

B. be prepared, with reasonable notice, to turn over all equipment and records of the Party to their successor.

C. be able, with reasonable notice, to account for all equipment and records of the Party.

D. be removed from office in the manner as specified in the Bylaws.

E. select such individuals as required for positions with the Libertarian National Committee.

Section 3. No member may hold an office for more than 8 consecutive years.

Section 4. The Chair of the Executive Committee shall have the power to appoint such committees and positions as deemed necessary, at a minimum those required by the Party Bylaws. All appointment terms shall end with the election of a new Executive Committee Chair.

Section 5. The Executive Committee shall maintain a balanced budget for the Party.

A. The Party may not incur a debt with a term of longer than 4 years, except with the direction from the Central Committee for capital expenditures and to acquire ownership of real property.

Article VI - Local Organizations

Section 1. The Party shall only recognize and be affiliated with those county Central Committees which are Ohio Revised Code compliant for major political parties.

Article VII - Conventions

Section 1. The Party may hold regular Conventions in accordance with section 3513.11 of the Ohio Revised Code and the Party Bylaws.

Section 2. A special Convention may be held upon petition of 33% of the members of the Party or 75% of the Central Committee. Such a petition shall state the business of the special Convention, and no other business shall be considered at such a Convention. The Central Committee shall provide advance notice of all Conventions according to Party Bylaws.

Section 3. The number of delegates and alternates to a state or national convention and the procedure for their selection shall be determined by the Executive Committee in accordance with section 3513.11 of the Ohio Revised Code and the Bylaws of the Party.

Section 4. The Central Committee shall have the power to select delegates for those counties which are not affiliated with the Party.

Section 5. Each delegate shall be permitted one and only one vote at any Convention. No voting may be done by proxy, unit rule, or slate selection.

Article VIII - Miscellaneous

Section 1. There shall be a set of Bylaws, in conformity with this Constitution, which may be adopted, changed, and repealed by:

A. A majority of the delegates at Convention. Bylaw changes to be considered for adoption by the Central Committee shall be communicated to those eligible to vote upon them by reasonable and common methods no less than two weeks prior to a vote.

B. A majority vote of the Central Committee. Bylaw changes to be considered in Convention must be communicated to those delegates eligible to vote upon them by reasonable and common methods no less than thirty days prior to the date of the Convention.

C. Failure to follow this change procedure will be grounds for invalidation of any resulting changes.

Section 2. The Party is now, and shall seek to retain its status as, the only officially affiliated party of the Libertarian Party of the United States of America operating in Ohio in accordance with the Libertarian Party bylaws.

Section 3. All Party meetings shall be open to the public and the press. Any Committee of the Party may go into executive session to consider and vote upon matters of budget, personnel, legal affairs, and any other matter that is not required by law to be discussed and voted upon in an open meeting, upon a majority vote of those members voting.

Section 4. On all Party ballots, all proposals shall provide the alternative: “None of the above.”

Section 5. Neither the Party nor its’ affiliates shall endorse for any partisan race a member of another Party when there is a member of the Party running for the same office. The Party and its’ affiliates reserve the right to endorse no candidate for any race.

Section 6. The Party and its’ affiliates shall not create any Bylaws or rules which attempt to limit participation by any individual based upon race, gender, national origin, language(s) spoken, sexual preference, gender identification, religious preference(s), military background, physical capabilities or characteristics, mental capabilities or characteristics, age, prior political affiliation or any other individual trait.

Section 7. The Libertarian Party of Ohio shall provide easy access and frequent opportunity for qualified residents of the State of Ohio to become members of the Libertarian Party of Ohio and to participate in the elective process and shall support any legislation which so provides.

Section 8. The most recent edition of Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern all proceedings not specifically covered by this Constitution or the associated Bylaws.

Article IX - Amendments

Section 1. The Central Committee may, by unanimous vote, make non-substantive changes in order to correct errors in standard American usage, numbering, or references to the Ohio Revised Code.

Section 2. This Constitution may be amended by 60% of all delegates to a Convention.

Section 3. Amendments to this Constitution may be made only at Conventions.

Section 4. All amendments to this Constitution must be made available to all members by reasonable and common methods no less than 30 days before a Convention.

Section 5. Any amendment to this Constitution must be sponsored by at least three delegates at the Convention to be eligible for a vote.

Section 6. An amendment adopted shall take effect upon the close of the Convention at which it was approved, otherwise it shall require a 75% vote for passage.

Article X - Adoption

Section 1. This Constitution shall take effect 48 hours after the close of the Convention at which it is adopted. The governing body of the previous Constitution shall have the authority to implement this Constitution and shall automatically be dissolved upon the election of the first Central Committee as described by this Constitution and associated Bylaws.

Section 2. This Constitution supersedes any and all other Constitutions of the Libertarian Party of Ohio.