Republicans do not like Libertarian candidate

Washington Poll, an academic research project at the UW, recently included former Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Ruth Bennett in its 11/8/07 poll of Washington voters' preferences for the 2008 governor's race. Even though incumbent Christine Gregoire and former Republican challenger Rossi got the most support, the results are interesting to Libertarians for other reasons.

According to the poll, Bennett appeals most to young non-Republicans (i.e., Democrats and Independents) on the east side of the state. Particularly significant is that few if any self-identified Republican voters on either side of the state supported Bennett in this poll.

These poll results suggest, contrary to the prevailing wisdom of the political pundits, Republicans and Libertarians are not the kindred spirits everyone thinks they are.