John Monds
Monds in 2020
Born (1965-06-17) June 17, 1965 (age 58)
EducationMorehouse College
Political partyLibertarian

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]

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 held the record for the highest percentage ever of the vote for a Libertarian in a statewide race until Mike Fellows received over 40% in the 2012 race for clerk of the Montana Supreme Court.

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]

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.[citation needed] 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.

Personal life

Monds and his wife, Kathaleena Edward Monds, live in Cairo, Georgia and have four children, Akintunde, Cazembe, Halima and Malik.[2][5]

Election results

Georgia gubernatorial election, 2010[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Nathan Deal 1,365,832 53.0 -4.9
Democratic Roy Barnes 1,107,011 43.0 +4.8
Libertarian John Monds 103,194 4.0 +0.2
Write-ins 124 nil
Majority 258,821 10.0 -10.0
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 66.6
Libertarian John Monds 1,076,726 33.4

References

  1. ^ Sheinin, Aaron Gould; Salzer, James "Deal, Handel battle till end in Ga. GOP primary" Archived June 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 2010-08-10. Retrieved 2010-08-13.
  2. ^ a b c d e "John Monds to seek Libertarian Nomination for Ga. Governor". Libertarian Party. March 24, 2009. Retrieved September 15, 2009.
  3. ^ Schneider, Craig (October 14, 2010). "Libertarians find their place in Georgia politics". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on October 22, 2010. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  4. ^ Donohue, Mike (November 5, 2008). "Deal wins gubernatorial election". The Technique. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  5. ^ a b c d e "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. Archived from the original on April 8, 2016. Retrieved February 12, 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. ^ "11/2/2010 - Federal and Statewide". Archived from the original on March 27, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2020.

External links

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