John Monds

John Monds (born June 17, 1965) is an American politician and activist. He was the Libertarian nominee for Governor of Georgia in 2010.[1][2] He was the first African American to appear on the general election ballot for Governor of Georgia.[3][4][5]

John Monds
Personal details
Born (1965-06-17) June 17, 1965
Political partyLibertarian
ResidenceCairo, Georgia
EducationMorehouse College

In 2008, Monds became the first Libertarian Party candidate in both Georgia and the rest of the United States to receive over 1,000,000 votes, when he ran for the Statewide office of Public Service Commission District 1 seat.[6][5] Monds received 1,076,726 votes for 33.4% of the vote in a two-way race with only a Republican opponent.[7] His vote total was the highest number of votes that a Libertarian candidate had ever received in a United States election at any level, until Gary Johnson received 1,139,562 votes in the 2012 presidential election.[8] Monds also received the highest percentage of the vote ever for a Libertarian in a statewide race.

On January 27, 2020, Monds filed his candidacy for the Libertarian nomination for President of the United States in the 2020 election.[9][10][11][5] He was eliminated on the third ballot during the Libertarian Party's first-of-its-kind online national convention on May 23; Jo Jorgensen won the nomination in the fourth round.[12]

Background

Monds is a 1983 graduate of J.M. Tate High School in Gonzalez, Florida and a 1987 graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia where he received a bachelor's degree in banking and finance.[2][5] Monds and his wife, Kathaleena Edward Monds, live in Cairo, Georgia and have four children, Akintunde, Cazembe, Halima and Malik.[2][5]

Recognitions

Monds earned the 2002 Superior Service Award and the 2003 Omega Man of the Year Award – both from the Mu Beta Beta Chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity. In 2003 he earned the Superior Service Award from the aforementioned fraternity's state organization. In 2005 he was named Man of the Year by the Grady County NAACP.[13]

Civic and political activities

In his capacity as a member and President of the Grady County NAACP,[2] Monds has held financial literacy classes for the Holder Park Summer Program, helped implement the Freedom Day Health Fair and advocated for citizens who believed they had been treated unjustly. He is a twenty-year member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity and has held various leadership positions on the local and state level including President of the Mu Beta Beta chapter. Monds also serves on the Grady County Planning Commission,[2] Grady County Habitat for Humanity board, the Libertarian Party of Georgia Executive Committee and the Grady County Fine Arts Project.

Election results
Georgia gubernatorial election, 2010[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Nathan Deal 1,365,832 53.02% -4.93%
Democratic Roy Barnes 1,107,011 42.97% +4.75%
Libertarian John Monds 103,194 4.01% +0.17%
Write-ins 124 0.00%
Majority 258,821 10.05% -9.68%
Turnout 2,576,161
Republican hold Swing
2008 Public Service Commissioner District 1 election, Georgia
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican H. Doug Everett 2,147,012 66.60%
Libertarian John Monds 1,076,726 33.40%

References
  1. Sheinin, Aaron Gould; Salzer, James "Deal, Handel battle till end in Ga. GOP primary", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 2010-08-10. Retrieved 2010-08-13.
  2. Staff (March 24, 2009). "John Monds to seek Libertarian Nomination for Ga. Governor". Libertarian Party. Retrieved September 15, 2009.
  3. Schneider, Craig (October 14, 2010). "Libertarians find their place in Georgia politics". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  4. Donohue, Mike (November 5, 2008). "Deal wins gubernatorial election". The Technique. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  5. "Million-Vote Man". Florida Courier. February 21, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  6. Williams, Teresa (November 5, 2008). "Libertarian Party's Monds makes history in Georgia". Thomasville Times-Enterprise. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  7. "Georgia Election Results: Official Results of the Tuesday, November 04, 2008 General Election". Georgia Secretary of State. February 18, 2009.
  8. Weigel, David (November 6, 2008). "Fun Election Facts for the Kids". Reason Online. Retrieved February 16, 2009.
  9. "FEC FORM 2 : STATEMENT OF CANDIDACY" (PDF). Docquery.fec.gov. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  10. Leonard, Jake (February 3, 2020). "Monds becomes fifteenth active candidate for Libertarian presidential nomination". Heartland Newsfeed. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  11. Rose, Sarah (February 4, 2020). "Former Georgia Gubernatorial Candidate Announces Presidential Campaign". Georgia Public Broadcasting. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  12. Doherty, Brian (May 23, 2020). "Jo Jorgensen Wins Libertarian Party Presidential Nomination". Reason. Reason Foundation. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  13. Gordon, Stephen (May 2, 2009). "John Monds: A credible Libertarian candidate". The Liberty Papers. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  14. http://sos.georgia.gov/elections/election_results/2010_1102/swfed.htm
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