Free State Project

The Free State Project (FSP) is an American political migration movement founded in 2001 to recruit at least 20,000 libertarians to move to a single low-population state to make the state a stronghold for libertarian ideas. New Hampshire was selected in 2003 for this purpose. The New Hampshire Union Leader reports that the Free State Project is not a political party, but a nonprofit organization. Participants in the FSP signed a statement of intent declaring that they intended to move to New Hampshire within five years of the drive reaching 20,000 participants. The statement of intent was intended to function as a form of assurance contract. As of February 3, 2016, 20,000 people had signed this statement of intent, completing the original goal, and 1,909 people were listed as "early movers" to New Hampshire on the FSP website, saying they had made their move prior to the 20,000-participant trigger. In the 2017–2018 term of the 400-member New Hampshire House of Representatives, 17 seats were held by Free Staters. The FSP is a social movement generally based upon decentralized decision making. The organization operates through volunteer activity and does not provide a centralized plan for participant actions within the state. As of May 2022, approximately 6,232 participants have moved to New Hampshire for the Free State Project. Some early participants have left the movement. Former New Hampshire representative Amanda Bouldin wrote "Why I left the Free State Cult" in 2025. Eric Brakey is the executive director of the FSP as of 2024.