Up Close: William Redpath

By Meghan Louttit (Contact)

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

The political world is not an easy one for a Libertarian, something that Leesburg resident and current chairman of the Libertarian Party, William Redpath can attest to.

As a candidate for the U.S. Senate this November, results for Redpath in Loudoun's districts mirrored results statewide and countywide, with Redpath garnering between .5 and .6 percent of the votes. In his home district of Leesburg, Redpath won nearly 1 percent of the vote, but in Broad Run he only garnered .3 percent.

In this e-mail interview, Redpath admits that a third-party candidate being elected to major office in Virginia is unlikely in the near future, and he discusses his involvement with the Libertarian Party and Loudoun's reaction to his candidacy.

Q: How long have you been involved with the Libertarian Party and what inspired you to join?

A: I joined the Libertarian Party on April 30, 1984. I joined because - while I thought the Reagan tax cuts during his first term were great - I came to think that he was not serious about cutting the size of government, and that if he wasn't, nobody in the Republican Party was. That's when I decided to join the Libertarian Party.

Q: When did you first run for public office and what did you learn from that experience?

A: I first ran for office when I ran for the House of Delegates, 34th District, against Vince Callahan in 1993. I didn't think I was going to win, but I told people that I hoped that Vince wouldn't beat me by more than 2 to 1. He beat me 6.5 to 1. I came to appreciate how tough it is for third-party candidates in our Single Member Plurality voting system, with single-member legislative districts and the person with the most votes wins.

Q: In your travels around the county and state during your run for Senate, what kind of response did you receive from Virginians? From Loudoun residents?

A: While I generally received a warm response from people, it was subdued. I think people weren't that interested in the U.S. Senate election this year, in part because it was a foregone conclusion that Mark Warner was going to win. Loudoun was no different than anywhere else.

Q: What do you think it will take for a third-party candidate to be elected to major office in Virginia?

A: It pains me to write this, but I don't think a third-party candidate will be elected to a major office in Virginia in the foreseeable future. If it does happen, it will be someone who is extremely wealthy or already a celebrity.

It will probably take a change in our electoral system to some form of proportional representation to make third-party candidates viable even for the General Assembly, let alone higher offices, and that is going to be tough to do, particularly in a state that does not have initiative and referendum rights for its people.

Q: What is your ultimate goal in running for public office and in your work with the Libertarian Party? Would you consider running for Senate again or another office entirely?

A: I am currently the national chairman of the Libertarian Party, and I want to build the Libertarian Party and let people know that there are alternatives out there to the two older parties. I also want to let people know that there are alternatives to our antiquated election system, which leads to uncompetitive elections and situations like 59 of the 100 House of Delegates districts having only one candidate on the ballot (which was the case in 2007). I may run for office again, but not in the foreseeable future.

Q: Tell us about your career outside of your work with the Libertarian Party.

A: I am a business appraiser, specializing in media and telecommunications.

Q: As a financial analyst, what is your take on the current financial problems facing Loudoun, and the state in general?

A: The financial problems are a result of government spending that has grown much faster than inflation and population growth combined over the past two to three decades. But we won't begin to address the fundamental problem of government overspending until the American people position government as an agent for justice, and not an agent for good, as there is an infinite amount of good to be done in this world.

Q: You were born in Ohio, but currently live in Leesburg. What was your path to Loudoun?

A: After graduating from Findlay (Ohio) High School in 1975, I earned a bachelor's degree from Indiana University, then an MBA from The University of Chicago. After that, I spent two years on the audit staff of Arthur Andersen & Co. in Cincinnati, then I worked for WISH-TV in Indianapolis, then ABC and NBC in New York, before moving to Loudoun County in 1985. I moved out of Loudoun County in 1988 but returned in 2003.

Q: What do you enjoy about living in the county?

A: I enjoy Loudoun's natural beauty, its quality of life and my relatively short commute to work near Dulles Airport.

Q: Tell us something about yourself that people might find surprising.

A: Along with a dog, my wife and I have four house rabbits. And, I was interviewed by rabbit celebrities Buns & Chou Chou on rabbitbites.com.

Tagged: elections, Leesburg, November 2008 Elections, politics, Up Close

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