The Libertarian community is a loud few in the United States but large enough to become the third largest political party in the United States. Donald Trump has been able to court libertarians in the past when people were unsure of his leadership, but now libertarians have cooled off. Donald Trump faced judgment in front of libertarians at the 2024 Libertarian National Convention. The convention comes after a successful run at his 2024 South Bronx Presidential Rally.
Libertarians have always bounced around policies they liked or disliked from the Republican Party. Before Donald Trump, the populist, was elected, he woke up the drive that was once there during the Tea Party Movement and the Ron Paul Revolution that simmered out. However, libertarians are holding him to some major mistakes, such as the bump stock ban and his vocal support for red flag laws. Trump's inability to successfully drain the swamp and his poor decision to keep reckless people out of his cabinet has led to some distrust in the libertarian community. Trump met boos; His performance was fair, but his legacy did not move the crowd. Garnering praise for some non-interventionism will always be a strong suit of Trump.
However, Donald Trump has done something few politicians have done. Not many Republicans or Democrats take the time to speak directly to the libertarian community—likely because upset enthusiasts will be outspoken. Libertarians tend to be very vocal against the two-party system that suppresses third-party activists like those in the Green Party and the Constitution Party. Libertarians have reorganized and focused on local elections, but the internal instability of the party leads to wide-ranging candidates.
Will Donald Trump be able to court Libertarians? It would be difficult to say; if the libertarians follow a more religious doctrine or a social-conservative edge, they may be more inclined to support the populist. The anarcho-capitalists will not warm up to Donald Trump—yet a few minorities will carve some relationship with other conservatives.
The 2024 Libertarian National Convention will paint a picture for Libertarians as they will get Republican recognition at the national level. Democrats have called the entire event embarrassing for Donald Trump but have not considered the exposure that Libertarians will get. Libertarians are far more likely to support non-interventionist policies overseas. The Democrats and Republicans have a legacy of questionable extrajudicial actions. Democrats have been losing many Latinos, and although Republicans have picked up many, most have remained independent. However, there is growing sentiment from younger libertarian-leaning centrists and conservatives. Democrats have challenged the Latinos on their culture with Latinx, so that may shake up the 2024 election.
With the Israeli-Hamas conflict continuing, anti-war sentiment has grown tremendously as those are calling for a ceasefire. Few progressives and most libertarians hold non-interventionist views. Pro-Palestinian activists will hurt Joe Biden and Donald Trump's chances to secure a landslide victory in the 2024 Presidential Election as Libertarians historically get one to three percent of the general election vote.
Donald Trump took a gamble going to the 2024 Libertarian National Convention, but it may have paid off for third parties.
