[media-credit name=’JEFF SCHORFHEIDE/Herald photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]

The often controversial former University of Wisconsin lecturer Kevin Barrett was defeated Tuesday in his run for Congress but stills claims victory in the election.

Barrett, the candidate of the Libertarian party, lost to the incumbent Rep. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, for the 3rd Congressional District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Kind garnered 62 percent of the vote while Barrett received only 2 percent and Republican candidate Paul Stark picked up 35 percent.

However, despite losing, Barrett proclaimed victory for receiving the most votes per dollar spent on the campaign.

In addition, Barrett said he feels he ran a successful campaign despite the many obstacles he faced, including his arrest for violating a Sauk County court order forbidding contact with his family.

Barrett said he commends both his opponents for having the “guts” to debate him while listening to some “very hard criticism and truth.”

“I think overall, I respect [Kind] for debating his opponents but also debating a third party opponent,” Barrett said. “I really kind of drilled him hard. I basically called him complacent in war crimes.”

Kind’s campaign manager Matt Ullsvik said in the end, this race was about the issues affecting the people in western Wisconsin.

“Kind will work for real change and help middle-class families,” Ullsvik said. “We can all work together across the aisle and put aside our differences for a better future.”

Barrett said he hopes with the change in atmosphere in this country, people like Kind will be able to take a courageous position distancing themselves from the war crimes that have been at the core of United States politics for the last several years.

With the election behind him, Barrett said his focus will shift to writing books and applying for academic jobs — including a position in the African language and literature department at the University of Wisconsin.

Barrett said he admits his appointment will be quite difficult especially after his controversial stint as a lecturer at UW came to the forefront in fall semester 2006, when he allegedly taught Sept. 11 conspiracy theories in the classroom.

“My chances of being hired will be very slight, not just because of the politics, but also because the incest taboo in academia,” Barrett said. “I got my Ph.D. from the African department here and chair of the department is my dissertation advisor.”

Barrett said he still thinks his chances of getting jobs in academia might be better abroad than in the U.S., yet is optimistic the 9/11 Truth Campaign might actually do well under an Obama administration.

As to his future in politics, Barrett said he would consider running again but would be hesitant to run under the current platform of the Libertarian party. He added prominent third-party individuals like Jesse Ventura, Ed Thompson, Ron Paul and himself are considering forming a new moderate Libertarian party that better represents their political ideologies.