Gubernatorial Candidate Predicts Nixon Win, Hopes Libertarian Message Gets Attention

Libertarian Party member Jim Higgins has seen his name on the ballot before in runs for Congress, but Tuesday night he did something for the first time. He voted for himself as a statewide candidate.

"It's a thrill," Higgins, a Creve Coeur area resident said after casting his ballot at Craig School. 

He knows he has an uphill and unlikely climb in his bid for the Governor's office. In fact, he's predicting Jay Nixon will win a second term by a solid margin.

"He's not an unpopular governor," Higgins said of Nixon. What did he think about his Republican opponent, businessman Dave Spence? "Outside of claiming that he'd produce jobs,, he didn't really go into detail how he was going to do that so I don't think he was that strong of a candidate," Higgins said. 

Higgins said he's hoping for at least 5 percent of the vote in the race in hopes of getting more media exposure for the party down the line. He said as a Libertarian, he's flattered that it appeared Jonathan Dine, the party's candidate for the U.S. Senate race, was mentioned in alleged robo-calls going out to voters this week, according to National Journal, as Republicans, concerned about peeling support toward Claire McCaskill, look to shore up Todd Akin's candidacy in a race that could come down to the wire.

"We've never been the target of an attack ad before," Higgins said.

Higgins said Libertarians would be gathering in Chesterfield at Talayna's to watch returns come in.