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Jo Jorgensen
Personal details
Born	Joanne Marie Jorgensen (1957-05-01) May 1, 1957 (age 67) Libertyville, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Libertarian
Education	Baylor University (BS) Southern Methodist University (MBA) Clemson University (PhD)
Website	Campaign website

Joanne Marie Jorgensen (born May 1, 1957) is an American academic and libertarian political activist. Jorgensen is the Libertarian Party's nominee for president of the United States in the 2020 election, She was previously the party's nominee for vice president in the 1996 U.S. presidential election as the running mate of Harry Browne. She was also the Libertarian nominee for South Carolina's 4th congressional district in 1992, receiving 4,286 votes, or 2.2%.

Early life and career

Jorgensen was born in Libertyville, Illinois and raised in Grayslake. She is an alumna of Grayslake Central High School. Her grandparents were Danish immigrants.

Jorgensen received a B.S. in Psychology at Baylor University in 1979 followed by a Master's in Administration from Southern Methodist University in 1980. She began her career at IBM working with computer systems, leaving there to become part owner and President of Digitech, Inc. She received a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Clemson University in 2002.

Jorgensen is a Psychology Senior Lecturer at Clemson University, a public, land-grant university in Clemson, South Carolina

Electoral history

1992 U.S. House of Representatives campaign

The first office for which Jorgensen ran was the 1992 United States House of Representatives election. She ran as a Libertarian to represent SC-4, in northwest South Carolina, against incumbent Democrat Liz J. Patterson and Republican Bob Inglis. Jorgensen placed third with 2.2% of the total vote.

1996 vice-presidential campaign

Prior to the 1996 United States presidential election, the Libertarian Party nominated Jorgensen to be the vice-presidential running mate of author Harry Browne. Jorgensen was nominated on the first ballot with 92 percent of the vote. She participated in a vice-presidential debate televised nationwide by C-SPAN on October 22, along with Herbert Titus of the Taxpayers Party and Mike Tompkins of the Natural Law Party.

Browne and Jorgensen, who were on the ballot in all 50 states and D.C., received 485,759 total votes, which placed them in fifth place with 0.5% of the popular vote. At the time, this was the Libertarian Party's best performance since 1980.

2020 presidential campaign

On August 13, 2019, Jorgensen filed with the FEC to run for the Libertarian presidential nomination in the 2020 election. She formally launched her campaign at the November 2, 2019 Libertarian Party of South Carolina convention, before participating in the official South Carolina Libertarian presidential debate the same day.

In the non-binding Libertarian primaries, Jorgensen was second in the cumulative popular vote, winning one of the 11 primaries.

On May 23, 2020, Jorgensen became the official Libertarian presidential nominee, making her the first woman to become the Libertarian nominee and the only female 2020 presidential candidate with ballot access to over 270 electoral votes. Spike Cohen was nominated to be Jo's VP. Spike is a mostly unknown figure in mainstream politics.

That same day, Jorgensen's supporters repurposed Hillary Clinton's unofficial 2016 campaign slogan, "I'm With Her," to bring attention to alleged sexual assault victims of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and President Donald Trump. The slogan trended on Twitter that night and made national headlines.

Platform

Political positions

Social Security

Jorgensen is critical of the current system and that the government has "spent every cent in the Social Security Trust Fund on other spending, leaving behind worthless IOU’s. Other countries have successfully replaced their government-run systems with individual retirement accounts" and doing this would make the current system fiscally stable for those who choose to remain. She is interested in working with Congress to change Social Security and would like to see the American people be able to opt out of Social Security. Anyone who took this route would be allowed to invest 6.2% of their payroll taxes in individual retirement accounts but would receive no Social Security benefits at retirement." Jorgensen is committed to making the system financially stable for current beneficiaries and those who do not opt out.

Criminal justice reform

Jorgensen opposes the taking of property through federal civil asset forfeiture and the use of qualified immunity to protect bad cops. She is also critical of the United States' unusually high incarceration rate. She wants to end federal civil asset forfeiture prior to conviction, and pardon persons convicted of non-violent victimless crimes. She also wants to work with Congress to end the failed War on Drugs and other victimless crime laws. On her first day, she has said she would pardon all those in prison who have been incarcerated for victimless crimes. That does not include people who have committed murder, theft, rape, etc. But if someone was convicted and incarcerated for possessing or using an illegal drug, she would pardon their sentence. She also opposes the government hiring private companies to run prisons, solitary confinement for juveniles, mandatory minimums for people charged with drug possession, and the death penalty for drug traffickers. She has said that "Whistleblowers are crucial and essential in keeping government in line. I have often said that on my first day in office, I would pardon Edward Snowden. We need to release Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning. We need people to keep an eye on our government.”

War on drugs

Jorgensen opposes the war on drugs, calling both of her opponents "tainted on race" and the drug war a "failed" policy. She supports abolishing drug laws, and promises to pardon all nonviolent drug offenders.

Gun rights

Jorgensen supports the rights to bear arms. She has stated she would abolish the ATF whose purpose, she believes to be to enforce "unconstitutional laws".

Police demilitarization

She promotes the demilitarization of police, saying that the police's duty "is to go after specific perpetrators of violent crimes, not to act as a force against the people."

Environment

Jorgensen favors Generation IV nuclear power to reduce CO₂ emissions and she wants to remove barriers to replacing coal-burning and oil-burning power plants in the United States with safe, non-polluting, high-tech nuclear power plants and also allowing off-grid use of solar power. Worldwide she believes in the need to consider all scientific and economic knowledge to care for the environment and that reducing pollution worldwide requires cost-efficient zero emission energy sources like nuclear. She supports removing "subsidies of all forms of energy production, allowing emissions-free nuclear power a chance to compete on a level playing field" and supports the use of hydraulic fracking while holding "fracking companies responsible for damages."

Foreign policy

Jorgensen opposes embargoes, economic sanctions, and foreign aid. She favors the withdrawal of American troops from foreign wars. She favors non-interventionism, free and open trade with other nations.

Government spending and debt

Jorgensen supports the Constitutional authority to block any new borrowing. She has pledged to veto any spending that leads to a deficit, veto any debt ceiling increases, and has promised not to burden “our children and grandchildren with bills for these bipartisan bloated budgets.”

Poverty

Jorgensen believes that the most effective way to help the poor is through the voluntary efforts of private groups and individuals. She believes that the best way to end poverty is to eliminate government policies and regulations that drive up costs for anything from housing to health care to new businesses. She wants to eliminate policies that cripple economic growth giving special attention to regulations driving up the cost of housing and health care, as well as those creating barriers to creating new businesses or entering professions. She is also wanting to repeal laws and regulations that prevent individuals and charitable organizations from helping those in need.

Education

Jorgensen favors the decentralization and localization of education, and promises to slash or eliminate the budget of the Department of Education, leaving the education of children to the states.

Trade

Jorgensen takes the position that trade and travel are fundamental rights enjoyed by every person. Moreover, she has proposed to eliminate trade barriers and tariffs, along with repealing arbitrary quotas on the numbers of people eligible to “legally work, visit or reside” in the United States.

Neutrality and Peace

Jorgensen favors no US involvement in foreign wars. Advocating armed neutrality similar to Switzerland’s, she has promised to “bring the troops home.” “Turn America into One Giant Switzerland: Armed and Neutral – with the military force to defend America’s shores and soil against any foreign attackers or invaders. Protected by an armed citizenry and by a military laser-focused on defending America." No US involvement in foreign wars. Bring home our 200,000+ American military personnel stationed in foreign countries. No US military aid to foreign governments. No US blockades or embargoes of non-military trade.

Taxes

Maintaining that taxes currently are not voluntary, Jo Jorgensen supports the abolition of the Internal Revenue Service and the elimination of federal income tax.

Healthcare

Jorgensen supports a free-market healthcare system financed by providing individuals with a spending account with actual money and then "giving them the choice giving them the authority to spend it how they like" with the incentive that allows individuals to keep any savings creating an increased incentive for heathcare providers to compete by meeting consumer demand for low cost services over the current system or single-payer, in order to reduce costs and make health care accessible.

Immigration

Jorgensen believes that “The freedom to trade and travel are fundamental to human liberty" and that as American citizens we should be free to travel anywhere we choose and to buy and sell anywhere in the world. She has said that she will use her Constitutional authority to eliminate trade barriers and tariffs and work to repeal arbitrary quotas on the number of people who can legally enter the United States to work, visit, or reside. In a Libertarian presidential primary debate, Jorgensen said she would immediately stop construction on President Donald Trump's border wall and eliminate quotas limiting who can immigrate to the U.S. During another primary debate she blamed anti-immigration sentiment on disproportionate media coverage of crimes by immigrants. She argued that immigration helps the economy and that the blending of cultures is beneficial.

COVID-19

She has said the government's bureaucratic response to COVID-19 prevented the rapid deployment of market solutions to the crisis, and its militaristic approach is "the biggest assault on our liberties in our lifetime," both in terms of restrictions on individual behavior such as stay-at-home orders and misdirected corporate bailouts, which she sees as antithetical to free-market principles and biased towards the well-connected.

Personal life

Jorgensen is married and has two grown daughters and a grandson.

See also

• List of female United States presidential and vice-presidential candidates

References

1. Winger, Richard (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Presidential Nomination on Fourth Vote". Ballot Access Date. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
2. "Greenville Woman To Run For Vice President". Herald-Journal. Associated Press. July 11, 1996. pp. A3?. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
3. Susnjara, Bob (May 25, 2020). "Woman who grew up in Grayslake is Libertarian Party's presidential pick". Daily Herald. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
4. "Jo Jorgenson | Meet Our Faculty | Who We Are | Center for Corporate and Professional Development". Furman University. Archived from the original on December 6, 2017. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
5. "College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences | Faculty and Staff Profile". Clemson University. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
6. "Faculty – Department of Psychology". Clemson University. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
7. Broder, David S. (July 7, 1996). "SEEKING POLITICAL BREAKTHROUGH, LIBERTARIANS PICK HARRY BROWNE". Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
8. "Libertarian Convention Acceptance Speeches". C-SPAN Video Library. July 6, 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
9. "Third Party Vice Presidential Debate". www.c-span.org. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
10. "Jorgensen, Jo CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT ID: P00013524". FEC.gov. August 13, 2019. Archived from the original on October 19, 2019. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
11. Welch, Matt (November 7, 2019). "Candidates Vie to Represent the Libertarian Wing of the Libertarian Party". Reason. Archived from the original on December 14, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
12. Brian Doherty (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Party Presidential Nomination". Reason.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
13. Steinhauser, Paul (May 25, 2020). "Libertarians pick first female presidential nominee". Fox News. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
14. Obeidallah, Dean. "The truth about 'I'm with her'". www.cnn.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
15. https://jo20.com/issues/social-security/
16. "Social Security Would Be Drastically Changed Under This Presidential Candidate's Plan". Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 27, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
18. ^ Cite error: The named reference JoIssues was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
19. https://jo20.com/issues/criminal-justice-reform/
20. https://palmbeachexaminer.com/2020/07/25/which-of-the-three-presidential-candidates-support-ending-the-war-on-drugs/
21. https://merionwest.com/2020/06/08/libertarian-presidential-nominee-jo-jorgensen-on-the-issues/
22. ^ Dinan, Stephen (June 12, 2020). "Libertarian nominee says Trump, Biden both tainted on race". Washington Times. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
23. https://twitter.com/jorgensen4potus/status/1265036427869532161?lang=en
24. https://twitter.com/jorgensen4potus/status/1273352630786576387
25. DiStaso, John (June 4, 2020). "NH Primary Source: Libertarian presidential candidate Jorgensen urges end of police 'militarization'". WMUR. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
26. https://jo20.com/issues/environment/
27. Jorgensen, Jo. "Jo Jorgensen's vision for America's future. Questions and Answers". Jo Jorgensen for President 2020. Jo Jorgensen for President. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
28. ""Turn America into One Giant Switzerland: Armed and Neutral,"". Jo Jorgensen for President 2020. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
29. Cite error: The named reference ReasonInt was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
30. Christ Phillips, ““Will Jo Jorgensen and the Libertarian Party hand the 2020 election to Trump?” Archived July 9, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, The Millennial Source, May 25, 2020
31. Chris Phillips, “Will Jo Jorgensen and the Libertarian Party hand the 2020 election to Trump?” The Millennial Source, May 25, 2020
32. Rick Solem, "The other 'Jo' wants your 2020 vote, if you're fed up with the two-party system, or if you're not", WIZM News Talk 1410 AM, June 13, 2020
33. https://jo20.com/issues/poverty/
34. Chris Phillips, “Will Jo Jorgensen and the Libertarian Party hand the 2020 election to Trump?” The Millennial Source, May 25, 2020
35. Cami Mondeaux, “The alternative presidential candidate: Jo Jorgensen runs for the Libertarian Party”, KLS News radio 102.7 FM, July 5, 2020
36. Jamie Redman, “2020 Libertarian Presidential Candidate Jo Jorgensen Talks Bitcoin, Endless Wars, Covid-19 Response”, Bitcoin.com, June 9, 2020
37. https://jo20.com/issues/neutrality-and-peace/
38. Chris Phillips, “Will Jo Jorgensen and the Libertarian Party hand the 2020 election to Trump?” The Millennial Source, May 25, 2020
39. https://www.wsaw.com/2020/07/26/libertarian-party-presidential-candidate-jo-jorgensen-campaigns-in-wisconsin/
40. ^ "Jorgensen Brings Pragmatic Approach to Libertarian Presidential Campaign". The Amarillo Pioneer. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
41. "Libertarian Presidential Contender Jo Jorgensen Wants To Combine Principle With Palatable Persuasion". Reason.com. May 21, 2020. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
42. https://jo20.com/issues/trade-immigration/
43. ^ "Libertarian Party Presidential Debate Offers Choice Between All Liberty Now or Moving the Ball of Liberty Down the Field". Reason. May 22, 2020. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
44. "Final Libertarian Presidential Debate with John Stossel". Youtube.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
45. "Libertarian Party of Kentucky Presidential Debates: the Finale". Youtube. Archived from the original on July 11, 2020. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
46. "NH Primary Source: Libertarian presidential candidate Jorgensen urges end of police 'militarization'". www.wmur.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
47. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved July 9, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

External links

• Official website
• Jo Jorgensen at Ballotpedia
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Profile at Vote Smart

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