Charles R. Earl (born June 6, 1946) is an American politician and former member of the Ohio House of Representatives 80th district from 1981 to 1984 when he declined to seek reelection. A member of the Libertarian Party, he received enough signatures to obtain ballot access and become a candidate for Governor of Ohio in the 2014 election.[1]

Charlie Earl
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 80th district
In office
October 7, 1981 – December 31, 1984
Preceded byMike Oxley
Succeeded byLynn Wachtmann
Personal details
Born (1946-06-06) June 6, 1946 (age 78)
Fostoria, Ohio
Political partyLibertarian (2010–present)
Other political
affiliations
Republican (before 2010)
SpousePat
Children2
Alma materCollege of Wooster (B.A.)
Bowling Green State University (M.A.)
ProfessionRadio broadcasting
Mass communication professor
WebsiteCampaign website

Early life, education, and family

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Earl was born in Fostoria, Ohio, a town near Findlay. Charlie attended public schools in Sycamore, Ohio and then enrolled at College of Wooster graduating in 1975 with a Bachelor of Arts in English. Later, Earl enrolled at Bowling Green State University graduating in 1992 with a Master of Arts in mass communication but stayed for two more years pursuing doctoral studies.[2]

Ohio House of Representatives (1981–1984)

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With Mike Oxley elected to Congress in a special election following the death of Congressman Tennyson Guyer, Earl was appointed to serve the remainder of Oxley's term in the Ohio House of Representatives.[3] In 1982, Earl won election to a full term. In 1984, Earl opted not to run for another term, and was succeeded by Lynn Wachtmann. He subsequently returned to the private sector.

2010 Ohio Secretary of State election

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In 2010, Earl decided to run for office, this time as a Libertarian. While initially looking to obtain his seat back in the Ohio House of Representatives, he decided to instead run for Ohio Secretary of State.[4] He lost the election, and has since again returned to private life.

2014 gubernatorial election

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Earl has announced his candidacy for Governor of Ohio.[5][6] Earl has achieved enough valid signatures to obtain ballot access in the election.[7] However, he was barred from the ballot because of technical faults in the signatures collected. The decision was appealed in federal court but the court determined the signatures were not collected by Libertarian Party or independent petitioners as required by law.[8]

Electoral history

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Election results
Year Office Election Subject Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes %
2010 Ohio Secretary of State General Charlie Earl Libertarian 179,495 4.9% Jon Husted Republican 1,973,422 54.0% Maryellen O'Shaughnessy Democratic 1,500,648 41.1%

References

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  1. ^ Gomez, Henry J.; clevel; .com (2014-02-18). "Ed FitzGerald faces only primary among statewide candidates; Libertarians fail to field full slate". cleveland. Retrieved 2020-10-19.
  2. ^ "Charlie Earl – Biography". Archived from the original on 2013-11-13. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
  3. ^ "Toledo Blade". news.google.com – via Google News Archive Search.
  4. ^ "3 vying for Ohio secretary of state". www.daytondailynews.com. Retrieved 2013-01-15.
  5. ^ McAvoy, John (6 September 2013). "Earl for Ohio Governor Campaign Launch". Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
  6. ^ Gomez, Henry J. (13 September 2013). "Charlie Earl, Ohio's libertarian candidate for governor, saddles up for his 'last rodeo'". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
  7. ^ Gomez, Henry J. (February 18, 2014). "Ed FitzGerald faces only primary among statewide candidates; Libertarians fail to field full slate". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
  8. ^ Vardon, Joe (9 March 2014). "Libertarians angry at GOP while acknowledging faults". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
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