The national LP picked Carla Howell, of the Center for Small Government, to be its next executive director. (For more about the Center, see Center for Small Government: “Small Government is Beautiful”.)
Her longstanding commitment to small government (advocated from her home state of Massachusetts) will leave her in good shape as the party’s ED.
The LP’s leadership will push, so much as they can, to assure that former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson becomes the 2012 LP presidential nominee in May. Howell and others are right to push the party to pick an experienced politician; the party’s message needs a messenger who’s campaigned before.
There will be other nominees, and perhaps a few rounds of balloting between Johnson and other candidates known only to Libertarian activists. I’d expect Johnson to win the nomination, but after that I think he’ll have a hard time attracting attention. (The right-leaning Bob Barr had trouble in ‘08, and the left-libertarian Johnson probably won’t fare better.)
Americans may not be well-satisfied with a choice between Pres. Obama and the GOP nominee (most likely Romney), but enough will stick with one of the two, thereby keeping third-party voting down to a small percentage of the presidential vote.
Still, Johnson’s nomination would be good for the LP, and one hopes Howell’s selection as executive director is auspicious, too.
For Howell’s optimism, see 2012 – Possibility and Hope for Libertarians.