Yesterday, Democratic voters in the 3rd House District of Tennessee went to the polls to decide who would take on incumbent Republican Zach Wamp. At this time, it appears that
Brent Benedict has
narrowly defeated Terry Stulce by a margin of 14,737 to 14,031. This would make Brent the second former Libertarian who is running as a Democrat for the House of Representatives.
In 2004, Brent Benedict ran as a Libertarian for the 29th State House District in Tennessee. A pro-life and pro-gun candidate, Benedict
says that his political influences include Governor Phil Bredeson, Grover Cleveland, Teddy Roosevelt and Thomas Jefferson.
The other former Libertarian running as a Democrat this year in the House of Representatives races is Frank Gonzalez in the Florida 21st against incumbent Republican Lincoln Diaz-Balart. When Gonzalez ran as a Libertarian for the same position in 2004, he received the highest percentage and highest vote total of any Libertarian Party candidate in a House of Representatives race that year. His showing, which was 27% of the vote, was better than any Democratic challenger in that district. This year, running as a Democrat, he has hopes to reach out to the diverse voting constiuency of the district--including Democrats, Independents, Greens, Libertarians, and true conservatives upset with the direction Bush is taking this country. His campaign is focusing on opposition to the War in Iraq, opposition to the Patriot Act and the war against the Bill of Rights, and our failed policies toward Cuba.