Tommy Thompson’s little brother, Ed, is running for governor of Wisconsin and is polling at 7 percent among registered voters. At first I thought that this was just another gimmick like so many other LP campaigns. Obviously trading on his brother’s celebrity –Tommy was governor of Wisconsin and is now Secretary of Health and Human Services — and the mayor of a small town called Tomah, Thompson couldn’t seriously have a chance to make a dent.

But apparently his down-to-earth style to the cheeseheads.

It’s a long time until November, though, and as the race tigtens between the major-party contenders, votes will be siphoned away from Thompson. Also, voters traditionally don’t seriously consider their votes until a month or two before the election.

So while the numbers are encouraging — it’s better to be to have a chance to lose 7 percent than not ever get close to it — only time will tell whether Thompson’s folksy approach will win over a significant number of voters who probably don’t really agree with the libertarian program as such.

Looking at Thompson’s issues page, I’ve got to give him credit for framing issues imaginatively. I highly doubt Thompson will pull off a Ventura-like win, as he hopes. But wouldn’t it be great if he pulled off 10 percent in the final tally and, even better, if the major-party candidates had to address libertarian issues in an attempt to win over voters leaning toward Thompson and the LP?