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Andre Marrou

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Andre Marrou
Member of the Alaska House of Representatives
from the 5th district
In office
January 14, 1985 – January 19, 1987
Seat B
Preceded byMilo Fritz
Succeeded byClaude Swackhammer
Personal details
Born
Andre Verne Marrou

(1938-12-04) December 4, 1938 (age 86)
Nixon, Texas, U.S.
Political partyLibertarian
Alma materMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Andrew Verne Marrou (/məˈruː/; December 4, 1938) is an American politician who was the third Libertarian elected to a state legislature with his election to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1984. He later served as the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nominee in the 1988 election and its presidential nominee in the 1992 election.

Early life

Andrew Verne Marrou was born in Nixon, Texas, on December 4, 1938, to Andrew Noil Marrou. He graduated from San Marcos High School and considered becoming a Methodist minister.He was one of the first people to receive a National Merit Scholarship and graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a bachelor's degree in 1962.[1][2][3][4] He was given the nickname Andre by French roommates at MIT.[5] He lived in Boston until he moved to Alaska in 1973.[6] He was a member of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary in Massachusetts and Civil Air Patrol in Alaska.[4]

Marrou joined the Libertarian Party in September 1976 after being handed a brochure in Anchorage. He became vice chair of the Alaska Libertarian Party. He moved to Homer and established a Libertarian affiliate there. They moved onto Perl Island in 1978, before returning to Homer in 1980.[3][4]

Marrou divorced four times.[6][5] He had two sons and adopted one with a wife he divorced in 1971. He married Norma Segal, the former chair of the Libertarian Party of New York.[4] His brother is American television news personality and Judge Chris Marrou.[7]

Career

Alaska House of Representatives

Marrou ran for Seat B from the 5th district in the Alaska House of Representatives in 1982, but placed second out of three candidates. He was elected to the state house in 1984, after defeating incumbent Republican Representative Milo Fritz by 56 votes. Marrou was the third Libertarian member of the state house after Dick Randolph and Dick Randolph.[8][9][6][3] Fritz asked Lieutenant Governor Steve McAlpine to decertify Marrou's victory claiming that Marrou knowingly lied on his conflict-of-interest form,[10] but McAlpine declined.[11]

Marrou lost to Claude E. "Swack" Swackhammer, a former Alaska State Trooper, in the 1986 election.[12] In 1986, he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he worked as a real estate broker.[3]

Marrou declined to join the Democratic and Republican caucuses.[13] During his tenure in the state legislature he served on the Community and Regional Affairs and Transportation committees.[14][15] He introduced more bills than any other member of the state house, but only one was passed.[16]

Presidential campaigns

In February 1988, Marrou announced at the Libertarian Party of California's state convention that he would seek the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nomination.[17] John Vernon nominated Marrou for the presidential nomination, but he declined. Three delegates voted for him on the presidential ballot. Ron Paul won the presidential nomination while Marrou, after being nominated by David Bergland and seconded by Tonie Nathan and Michael Emerling, won the vice presidential nomination.[18][19] Perry Willis was the chair of Marrou's vice-presidential campaign.[20]

Marrou announced his presidential campaign to LP News and launched it on November 7, 1990, with James A. Lewis as his campaign manager.[21] He won the Libertarian presidential nomination for the 1992 presidential election at the national convention on August 31, 1991.[22] He wanted a woman to serve as his vice-presidential running mate and favored Mary Ruwart, but she lost the nomination to Nancy Lord.[5]

Marrou spent $30,000 in New Hampshire during the 1992 primary.[2] He won the Libertarian presidential primary without opposition, received 99 write-in votes in the Republican votes, and 70 write-in votes in the Democratic primary.[23] He received more votes in Dixville Notch's midnight vote than the winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries.[24]

Marrou meant to participate in a debate in Richmond, Virginia, with Lenora Fulani and a representative for Lyndon LaRouche on October 15.[25] However, he had a commitment in California and was instead represented by Steve Givot.[26]

Marrou had most of his campaign staff resign during the summer of 1992, mainly because he was willing to accept a federal campaign subsidy in contradiction to Libertarian Party's non-coercion pledge. Several of his former campaign staffers sought to have the Libertarian Party strip him of the nomination because he had unpaid child support, had an arrest warrant in Massachusetts for an outstanding contempt of court charge, claimed to have been married twice when it was in fact four times, was being investigated for campaign improprieties from his time in Alaska, was reportedly running up unpaid credit card bills in a campaign PAC's name without their approval, and was habitually months late in making his house payments. The Libertarian Party national committee (LNC) decided to take no action for fear it would call attention to these issues.[27]

Marrou placed fourth in the election with 291,628 votes worth 0.28% of the popular vote.[28] He raised $824,168.00 and spent $830,840.00 during the campaign.[29]

Marrou received one write-in vote in the New Hampshire Libertarian vice-presidential primary during the 1996 presidential election. Irwin Schiff won with a plurality of write-in votes.[30]

Political positions

Marrou supports abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, Federal Reserve, and income tax.[5] He supports abortion and gay rights.[31] He supported eliminating all border restrictions. He supported repealing the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 and eliminating all tariffs.[32][33]

Marrou supported limiting members of the Alaska state house and senate to four two-year terms and two four-year terms respectively.[13] He proposed legislation to abolish the Alaska Transportation Commission.[34] He opposed legislation requiring drivers to wear seatbelts.[35]

References

  1. ^ "Youth Given Scholarship". Austin American-Statesman. October 3, 1956. p. 11. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b "Ex-Alaska Legislator Marrou Wins Vote in New Hampshire". Daily Sitka Sentinel. February 18, 1992. p. 5. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c d "Andre Marrou" (PDF). CLiPBoard. February 1991. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 21, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d Nathan, Tonie (December 1991). "Andre Marrou: A Man for All Seasons" (PDF). LP News. p. 6-7.
  5. ^ a b c d "Going for the Bronze". Reason. November 1992. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Mr. Marrou Goes to Juneau". Reason. October 1986. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024.
  7. ^ "Marrou outpolls competitors in first town to report results". San Antonio Express-News. Associated Press. February 18, 1992. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2012.
  8. ^ "To Run". Daily Sitka Sentinel. March 24, 1982. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Libertarian Winner In Legislative Race". Daily Sitka Sentinel. November 7, 1984. p. 5. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Losing Candidate Milo Seeks Winner's Ouster". Daily Sitka Sentinel. January 3, 1985. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Defeated Legislator Gives Up". Daily Sitka Sentinel. January 16, 1985. p. 1A. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Cross, Sue (February 23, 1988). "Marrou hits trail again". Anchorage Daily News. Associated Press. Retrieved May 8, 2012.
  13. ^ a b "Libertarian Politics Returning to Juneau". Daily Sitka Sentinel. January 3, 1985. p. 5. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Directory 1985, p. 27-28.
  15. ^ "Standing Committees For House Given Out". Daily Sitka Sentinel. January 14, 1985. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Libertarians Lose". Daily Sitka Sentinel. November 5, 1986. p. 8. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Andre Marrou: Libertarian Hopeful for Individuals". Victoria Advocate. June 13, 1987. p. 7. Archived from the original on December 23, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Paul/Marrous Picked to Lead LP in '88" (PDF). LP News. October 1987. p. 1; 6.
  19. ^ "Libertarians choose Texan as nominee". Miami Herald. September 6, 1987. p. 28A. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "News Digest" (PDF). LP News. October 1987. p. 11.
  21. ^ "Marrou Declares for President" (PDF). LP News. November 1990. p. 1.
  22. ^ "Libertarians pick their candidate". San Angelo Standard-Times. September 1, 1991. p. B2. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Ladd 1993, p. 134-135.
  24. ^ "Dixville Notch goes Libertarian in first vote of '92 primaries". The Spokesman-Review. February 18, 1992. p. 9. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Minor-party candidates want voice in presidential debates". Odessa American. October 8, 1992. p. 2A. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Fringe presidential candidates have their own national debate". El Paso Times. October 16, 1992. p. 2A. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ Radicals for Capitalism by Brian Doherty, pp. 515–16
  28. ^ Klein 1993, p. 9.
  29. ^ "Marrou, Andre V". Federal Election Commission. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024.
  30. ^ Ladd 1997, p. 186.
  31. ^ Shapiro, Tamar (March 4, 1992). "Fulani, Marrou Attack Media". The Harvard Crimson. Archived from the original on June 19, 2014. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  32. ^ "Bills Introduced". Daily Sitka Sentinel. March 7, 1985. p. 8. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "Libertarian hopes to influence government policy". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. September 26, 1992. p. B2. Archived from the original on February 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ "House OKs Insurance Regs on Air Carriers; Truckers Left Out". Daily Sitka Sentinel. March 25, 1985. p. 3. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. ^ "Mandatory Seat Belt Bill Slips By House". Daily Sitka Sentinel. March 13, 1986. p. 5. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

Works cited

Alaska House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the Alaska House of Representatives
from the 5th district
Seat B
1985–1987 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Libertarian nominee for Vice President of the United States
1988 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Libertarian nominee for President of the United States
1992 		Succeeded by
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