Robert Sarvis got 6.5 percent of the 2013 vote for Virginia governor.
Robert Sarvis, the 2013 Libertarian candidate for governor, said Wednesday that he wants to run for U.S. Senate, challenging Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va.
“I finally got the go-ahead from my wife and told the Libertarian Party folks that I am going to run,” Sarvis said in an interview.
In 2013, Sarvis was vastly outspent by the two major-party candidates but managed to get 6.5 percent of the vote.
Libertarians will nominate their candidate at a party convention in Richmond on Feb. 8. So far, Sarvis, a former software engineer, teacher, lawyer and new media entrepreneur from Northern Virginia, is the only Libertarian who has announced a Senate bid.
Sarvis said he will run on a similar platform as last year, including small government, a reduction of spending, legalization of marijuana and allowing same-sex couples to marry.
People are also reading…
“Libertarians also want less intervention in foreign policy, so that will be something new for me to focus on,” he said.
Sarvis said he is fully aware that Warner is a popular and well-funded candidate. He said Ed Gillespie, a high-profile contender for the GOP, is another “Washington insider” with a big war chest.
“Voters don’t have anyone who they can trust to defend their principles, and that’s where I see my chance,” he said.
This year, he wants to “aim higher with the fundraising,” but he has not yet put together a team.
If he gets his party’s nomination, he will have to amass 10,000 signatures, including 400 from each congressional district, to qualify for the ballot.
(804) 649-6537
Twitter: @MSchmidt
