Carla Howell

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Carla A. Howell (born 1955) is an American politician who advocates small government. She is President of the Center for Small Government.

In 2002, she sponsored a ballot measure to end the income tax in Massachusetts. It was the boldest tax cut proposal ever placed on the ballot in United States history, yet it almost won with 45.3% of the vote in a state that has historically been in favor of governmental solutions. In 2007, she, along with fellow co-chair Michael Cloud, re-formed the Committee For Small Government (the group behind the 2002 effort to end the income tax). The Committee has the same goal for 2008, and are trying to obtain enough petition signatures to put the issue on the ballot again [1].

Howell released a spoof tax song, which she composed and sang, titled "How Could I Live Without Filing Taxes," in 2001.

She was the Massachusetts Libertarian Party candidate in the race for U.S. Senate in 2000, which was won by Democrat Ted Kennedy. Howell received 11.9% of the vote (a total of 308,860 votes), only 1% behind the Republican, making Howell's the most successful third party Senate race in America in 2000, according to Campaigns and Elections magazine.

Carla Howell ran for State Auditor in 1998. In the race won by A. Joseph DeNucci, Howell finished with 102,198 votes for 5.71% of the total vote. Her candidacy was endorsed by the Boston Herald. She ran for Governor of Massachusetts in 2002. In the race won by Mitt Romney, Howell finished 4th with 23,044 votes for 1.05% of the total vote. In 2004, Howell declined to run for President of the United States.

Carla Howell is a great-granddaughter of the Honorable William Eustis Russell, a Democrat elected Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and a granddaughter of 1950s Boston socialite Margaret Russell Howell.