Libertarians Back Stern in Run for N.Y. Governor

Surrounded by an entourage of screaming, disorderly fans and scantily clad women, talk radio host Howard Stern on Saturday won the New York state gubernatorial nomination of the relatively staid Libertarian Party, insisting all of the time that his candidacy was not a joke.

But while the old-time Libertarians talked seriously of ballot access, cutting back government and eliminating welfare, hundreds of Stern supporters packed the hall, waving rubber sex toys, heckling the other candidates and waiting for their chance to vote.

To the dismay of some of the party faithful, Stern won on the first ballot, with 287 of the 381 delegates.

“I am honored to be the Libertarian candidate,” said Stern, as two women danced on the dais. “For any of you who had doubts about me--I am serious. I am in this to win.

“As I look out on this shining crowd and see all your beautiful faces, I have only one thing to say: It’s amazing they let you people vote,” Stern told his supporters.

During the hours that followed, many party regulars came to agree, as they battled unruly Stern fans over how the vote should be conducted and, implicitly, over their small, not particularly successful, party.

“This is a travesty to the history of libertarianism,” Robert Flanner, 59, chairman of the Brooklyn delegation, yelled as hundreds of recently registered Stern supporters shouted him down and laughed. Flanner, a founding member of the Libertarian Party 21 years ago, insisted that he would resign if Stern were selected.

Stern, 40, spoke about his campaign platform: signing the death penalty into law and then handing over the reins of government to his candidate for lieutenant governor, little-known former state legislator Stan Dworkin.

Now that he has wrapped up the nomination, Stern’s supporters must gather 15,000 signatures from 16 congressional districts around the state to get on the ballot in November to challenge Gov. Mario M. Cuomo.

But winning the election will not be easy: Polls have shown that although Stern is known by more than 75% of all New Yorkers, he is viewed negatively by nearly as many.