ATLANTA — The Libertarian Party gave its presidential nomination to Michael Badnarik on Sunday at a convention that featured something those of the two major parties will lack: suspense.
"I finally got a microphone to the people who needed to hear my message," the 49-year-old computer programmer and technical trainer from Austin, Texas, said after a late surge to win the nomination Sunday afternoon.
Badnarik (pronounced bad-NOR-ik) was considered to be trailing the two other leading candidates by many Libertarians when the convention began Friday at a downtown Atlanta hotel. He faced Cleveland radio show host Gary Nolan and Hollywood producer Aaron Russo, rivals with more money and experience in front of microphones.
But after a well-received showing at a debate Saturday, Badnarik barely trailed Russo, by 258 delegate votes to 256, on the convention's first ballot Sunday morning. When Nolan again polled in third place on the second ballot, he conceded and endorsed Badnarik, who overtook Russo on the third ballot, 423-344.
"I really thought Michael didn't have a chance, but he really rose to the occasion yesterday," Russo said in his concession speech.
Badnarik's running mate, elected by the convention later Sunday, will be Richard Campagna, 51, of Iowa City, Iowa.
The surprising ending capped a high-spirited convention by the 33-year-old party, which espouses limited government, low taxes and unfettered personal rights on issues ranging from guns to medical marijuana.
"We went through a rough time after 9/11," said Fred Childress of Falls Church, Va., a government economist who serves on the party's national committee. But growing disenchantment with the Patriot Act and the progress of the war have begun to bring more voters in the party's direction, he said.
"The last several months, we've noticed a huge shift, a huge shift," Childress said.
James Harris, a Georgia Libertarian candidate for the Public Service Commission in 1988 and 2002, said states such as Georgia that appear to be safely in George W. Bush's pocket give conservatives a chance to register a protest by voting with his party.
"Fiscal conservatives are just outraged at Bush," Harris said.
In his acceptance speech, Badnarik urged the party to abandon its "habit of arguing the fine points" and seize "a unique opportunity to change the world."
Badnarik is a senior trainer for Evolutionary Technologies International, and according to his campaign biography has worked on the Stealth bomber project and the Diablo Canyon (Calif.) nuclear plant.
He teaches an eight-hour class on the U.S. Constitution at Libertarian functions, and appeared to touch a nerve at the convention with his slogan, "The Constitution: It's not just a good idea, it's the law."
Badnarik said Libertarians will reach out to younger voters this year on the issue of the "pending resumption of the draft," a possibility that has been broached by some lawmakers, including Sens. Zell Miller of Georgia and Republican Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, but not by the Bush administration.
"This time around, both men and women would be inducted into service to go and fight foreign wars," Badnarik said.