Michael ter Maat (born 1961)[1] is an American businessman, political candidate, former economist, and retired police officer. A member of the Libertarian Party, he was the running mate to presidential nominee Chase Oliver in the 2024 presidential election.[2][3]

Mike ter Maat
Ter Maat in 2023
Personal details
Born
Michael ter Maat

(1961-06-20) June 20, 1961 (age 63)[citation needed]
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Political partyRepublican (before 2010)
Libertarian (2010–present)
EducationRensselaer Polytechnic Institute (BS, MBA)
George Washington University (MS, PhD)
WebsiteCampaign website

Career

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Ter Maat received his Bachelor of Science in aeronautical engineering (1982) and Master of Business Administration in management (1983) from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and his Master of Science (1989) and Doctor of Philosophy (1992), both in economics, from George Washington University.[4]

He was a financial economist for the White House Office of Management and Budget from 1989 to 1992. He served as a Senior Economist and Group Director, Information Products for the American Bankers Association from 1992 to 2002. He founded Foreword Financial and served as its program development director from 2002 to 2008. From 2008 to 2010, ter Maat served as an adjunct professor at Nova Southeastern University and Barry University. He served as a police officer for the City of Hallandale Beach, Florida from 2010 to 2021, after which he retired and moved to Kinsale, Virginia.[4][1]

Political campaigns

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2022 U.S. House of Representatives campaign

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Previously a Republican,[5] ter Maat first ran for office as a Libertarian during Florida's 20th congressional district's special election in 2022, where he earned 0.7% of the vote.[6]

Regarding his run for Congress, ter Maat commented, "one of the biggest problems we have as a nation is our deepening political divide and that as a Libertarian, I am particularly well-positioned to contributing to bridging this chasm."[7]

2024 presidential campaign

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Mike ter Maat's logo for his presidential candidacy prior to the 2024 convention.

Ter Maat began his campaign seeking the 2024 Libertarian Party presidential nomination in June 2022. At the 2024 Libertarian National Convention, he finished third for president among ten nominated candidates and several write-ins.[8][9][10]

2024 vice presidential candidacy

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After being eliminated for president, ter Maat endorsed Chase Oliver for president and accepted Oliver's offer to run as his vice presidential running mate after voicing dissatisfaction with the strategy employed by the Mises Caucus, which endorsed Michael Rectenwald for president.[11] Ter Maat received 51.3% in the second round of voting, defeating runner-up Clint Russell who received 47% of the vote.[12]

Austrian economist

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After working for the American Bankers Association and the White House, ter Maat published The economics of e-cash in IEEE Spectrum, a journal published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers in February 1997 and cited by publications including the Association for Computing Machinery and patents including for an internet payment system using smart card.[13][14][15] He is an Austrian economist who advocates for a shift in monetary policy to a more laissez-faire model during times of recession.[16]

In a one-on-one debate, transcribed by The Korea IT Times, with international relations scholar and independent presidential candidate Emanuel Pastreich, ter Maat asserted that "The problem is that a collapse of the federal government will lead to a collapse of financial markets all over the world, especially if the bond market dips and the US dollar collapses".[17]

Books

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Ter Maat is the editor and co-author of:

  • ter Maat, M., Borders, M., Consorte, D., Mavrakakis, I., Sharpe, L., Sammeroff, A., Paige, R., Jiminez, A.. A Gold New Deal: The Government We Will Tolerate. Amazon, Independently published, December 30, 2023.[18]

Platform

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Ter Maat calls his election platform "The Gold New Deal."[19][non-primary source needed] He wants to decentralize government, limited by the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. His platform consists of ten planks.[20][non-primary source needed]

  1. Empower Decentralization of Authority
  2. Preserve Individual Autonomy
  3. Eliminate the IRS
  4. Limit Federal Expenditure
  5. End Mandatory Investment
  6. End the Federal Reserve System
  7. Allow Phase-Out of Public Education
  8. Reform Police Accountability
  9. End Discretionary Military Interventionism
  10. Impose Term Limits

References

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  1. ^ a b Sharp, John (March 23, 2023). "What's next for Libertarians? Presidential hopefuls bring platforms of decriminalizing drugs, ranked choice voting to Alabama". AL.com. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  2. ^ Boehm, Eric (May 27, 2024). "Chase Oliver is the Libertarian Party's Presidential Pick". Reason.com. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  3. ^ Robertson, Nick (May 27, 2024). "Libertarian Party chooses Chase Oliver as presidential nominee". The Hill. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Questionnaire: Mike ter Maat, Libertarian for U.S. House, District 20". Sun Sentinel. December 15, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  5. ^ Archibald, Mark (September 27, 2022). "Libertarian candidate speaks to party members". Corsicana Daily Sun. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  6. ^ "Election Results Data Extract Utility". results.elections.myflorida.com. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  7. ^ "Questionnaire: Mike ter Maat, Libertarian Candidate for U.S. House, District 20 • Tamarac Talk". tamaractalk.com. August 30, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  8. ^ Libertarian Party (May 26, 2024). Libertarian Party National Convention 2024 Day 3. Retrieved May 28, 2024 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ "Libertarians Pick Chase Oliver, Finalizing Texas Ballot". The Amarillo Pioneer. May 27, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  10. ^ "Trump, RFK Jr. in split-screen showdown at Libertarian National Convention". ABC News. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  11. ^ Pellish, Aaron (May 26, 2024). "Chase Oliver wins Libertarian Party presidential nomination". CNN. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  12. ^ Winger, Richard (May 26, 2024). "Mike Ter Maat Wins the Libertarian Party Vice-Presidential Nomination". Ballot Access News. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  13. ^ ter Maat, Mike (February 1997). "The economics of e-cash". Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. 34 (2): 68–73. doi:10.1109/6.570836. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  14. ^ Subramanian, Hemang (December 27, 2017). "Decentralized blockchain-based electronic marketplaces". Communications of the ACM. 61 (1): 78–84. doi:10.1145/3158333. ISSN 0001-0782.
  15. ^ US6282522B1, Davis, Virgil M.; Cutino, Suzanne C. & Berg, Michael J. et al., "Internet payment system using smart card", issued 2001-08-28 
  16. ^ "Workers worried about a 'looming recession' pick up more side hustles". Yahoo Finance. March 11, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  17. ^ "Presidential Debate about Real Issues: Libertarian Ter Maat vs. Independent Pastreich". Korea IT Times. May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  18. ^ Maat, Mike ter; Borders, Max; Consorte, Dennis; Mavrakakis, Irene; Sharpe, Larry; Sammeroff, Antony; Paige, Russell O.; Jiminez, Adolfo (December 30, 2023). A Gold New Deal: The Government We Will Tolerate. Independently published. ISBN 979-8-8726-2349-6.
  19. ^ "Home". The Gold New Deal. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  20. ^ "Platform". The Gold New Deal. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
Party political offices
Preceded by Libertarian nominee for Vice President of the United States
2024
Most recent