Ken Krawchuk, the Libertarian Party candidate for Pennsylvania Governor in 1998 and 2002, will be seeking the party's 2014 gubernatorial nomination this Saturday, February 22, 2014, at their annual convention being held at the Best Western Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center, 300 Gateway Drive, Bethlehem, PA (www.lehighvalleyhotel.com). Detailed information about the convention schedule, speakers, and complimentary media admission is available at www.LpPaConvention.org.

Krawchuk believes his chances of receiving the nomination are excellent. "I've been campaigning around the state since early November when I announced my intent to form an exploratory committee, and the response among Libertarians has been overwhelmingly supportive. The long-time party members recall my performance in the debates and on the campaign trail in 2002, and would love to see an encore. The newer members are excited by the idea of a Libertarian Governor candidate, which is something most of them have never known." Because of Pennsylvania's onerous ballot access laws and the anticompetitive antics of the two old parties, Krawchuk stands as the last third party or independent gubernatorial candidate to appear on the ballot for more than a decade.

Krawchuk notes how the political landscape has tilted strongly toward Libertarian principles since his last campaign. "When I talked in 2002 about decriminalizing marijuana, legalizing gay marriage, or nullifying bad federal laws, it was all cutting edge politics. But today these are all mainstream ideas that have gained broad public acceptance. I'm eagerly looking forward to continuing the discussion of other cutting-edge issues, including defusing the abortion debate, eliminating the state's monopoly on public education, and reforming over-regulation and welfare through the Separation of Society and State, among many other issues. It's becoming a very Libertarian world out there, and it's my goal to accelerate that trend, just as I did in 2002."

Krawchuk is upbeat about his chances for victory in 2014. "Historically, voter turnout for gubernatorial elections is less than 40%. So when you crunch the numbers, you'll find that in a competitive 3-way race--which it's definitely going to be this year--all it would take for a Libertarian victory is for us to attract the vote of one out of eight voting age Pennsylvanians. One out of eight is all it takes."

Among the challenges facing not only Krawchuk's campaign, but also that of any independent or third party candidate, are Pennsylvania's onerous ballot access laws. Where the two old parties only need 1,000 or 2,000 signatures to get their candidates on the statewide ballot, Krawchuk calculates that the Libertarian gubernatorial ticket will need a minimum of 16,639 signatures - eight to sixteen times as many - even though the Pennsylvania Constitution mandates that "All elections shall be free and equal." Adding to that signature burden, in every one of the last five statewide elections some or all independent and third party candidates have had their petitions challenged in court, and most candidates were either intimidated into dropping out of the race or were thrown off the ballot for specious reasons Two candidates were also fined over $80,000 each. "Experience is a harsh schoolmistress," Krawchuk noted, "but we've learned quite a lot about the system. We emerged victorious after the Republican's 2012 challenge, and I fully expect we'll weather any challenge in 2014. But for the longer term, we're lobbying to have the Voters Choice Act (SB 195) passed, and that will level the playing field for challenger candidates across the board regardless of party, and lead to greater competition at the ballot box and more choices for Pennsylvanians."

Ken Krawchuk, 60, has been a registered Libertarian since 1993. He was born and raised in the Feltonville section of Philadelphia, graduated with honors from Cardinal Dougherty High School in 1971, and in 1975 received a B.S. in Physics from St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia. He and his wife Roberta have lived in Abington since 1981, a Philadelphia suburb, and have three daughters and two grandchildren (with a third on the way). Mr. Krawchuk is also an avid whitewater canoeist, year-round backpacker, and railroad enthusiast.

Professionally, Mr. Krawchuk is an information technology entrepreneur serving as a business architect for the pharmaceutical, insurance, and financial markets. He is also the lead inventor of three U.S. Patents related to database theory.

Mr. Krawchuk is an award-winning Distinguished Toastmaster and a professional public speaker. He is also a freelance writer and author of Atlas Snubbed, a pastiche parody sequel to Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. He refers to Atlas Snubbed as his "platform novel" because it describes as fiction many of the issues highlighted in his campaign, most notably the Separation of Society and State.

Founded in 1971, the Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the state and the nation, with over 150 elected and appointed officials currently serving in office nationwide, and 40 in Pennsylvania. Like the Founding Fathers, Libertarians believe that you have the inalienable right to conduct your life as you see fit, without interference, so long as you respect the rights and property of others. As a result, Libertarians favor a small, responsible government.

For more information about the Libertarian Party, the public is invited to contact the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania at www.LpPa.org or (800) R-RIGHTS, or the National Libertarian Party at www.Lp.org or (202) 333-0008.

For more information about the Krawchuk campaign, please visit the campaign website at www.KenK.org. The campaign can be contacted at Campaign@KenK.org, or 224-Krawchuk (224-572-9248).

- End -

Release 14-02