On May 27, the South Carolina Senate passed H. 3746, which makes it more difficult for an independent candidate to get on the ballot. The bill must now return to the House because it was amended in the Senate. The South Carolina legislature adjourns in two weeks.
H. 3746 requires an independent candidate to file a declaration no later than primary day in June. Currently, independents can wait until after the June primary to decide whether to petition or not. The bill requires each petition sheet to be notarized, and says that no notary public may sign the petition if he or she notarized any petition sheet for that same candidate. The bill says no one may circulate an independent petition earlier than six months before the deadline. The bill does not permit anyone to sign unless that person had been a registered voter at least thirty days before the petition is submitted.
Current law not only doesn’t require petitions to be notarized, it doesn’t even require the circulator to sign the petition or otherwise identify himself or herself. That makes it possible for a petition to be posted on a bulletin board or some other public place, where anyone can sign in the absence of any circulator.
The Senate Judiciary Committee version of the bill had said no one may sign if that person voted in a primary, and the Senate Judiciary Committee version also lowered the number of signatures. However, the Senate itself took those two amendments out of the bill. The Committee had lowered the statewide petition from 10,000 to 4,000, and had lowered the number of signatures from 5% of the number of registered voters, to 3%.
South Carolina requirements for independent candidates are already so difficult, no one has ever qualified as an independent candidate for either House of Congress, nor for Governor. Why the legislature wants to make it still more difficult is a mystery. The South Carolina newspapers have not publicized this bill.
“Why the legislature wants to make it still more difficult is a mystery.”
Umm, tea party?
I guessing they weren’t around the last time SC updated its ballot access laws.
Not likely Dale. I’m a South Carolinian and co-chair of the SC Green Party. There are already 9 ballot qualified political parties in SC, including the Constitution, Libertarian, Green and Independence parties. “Tea Party” types should find themselves welcomed warmly by both the Constitution and Republican parties. Indeed, both Henry McMaster and Nikki Haley are calling themselves “Tea Party candidates”.
Not that I have any idea what those people are up to.
Are ALL New Age gerrymander party hacks ENEMIES of the People ???
Is SC getting ready for a second secession effort ???
See the 620,000 DEAD Americans on both sides in the 1860-1865 Civil War.
Separate is NOT equal — even in SC while it continues in the Union.
Brown v. Bd of Ed 1954
Equal nominating petitions.
P.R. and App.V.
One doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to know why the Dems & Reps want to increase the ballot access requirements for Independent or 3rd party candidates. It’s simple. The Establishment, which controls both major parties, wants a 2 party system so they can control the election outcome.
Several years ago, I stated that election equality for all parties and independents MUST become a civil rights issue. We’ve got to get off the blogs with our whining and griping and learn from the Civil Rights Movement of the 50’s and 60’s that this is the ONLY way to change things.
The Courts are mostly Democratic or Republican appointees and they are not going to “bite the hand” that put them there. While we may win an occassional case, we lose a couple of others that set us back. It’s the “one step forward, two steps backward” effect.
BALLOT ACCESS NEWS could be the medium for such a movement and COFOE could be the organization and provide the leadership which directs such.
The rights we Independents and 3rd partisans are denied in most election jurisdictions are not coming to us any other way. We must “peaceably assemble and petition for a redress of our grievances.”
It time to stop the talking and take action.
Will we? Or will we continue to wimpishly complain?
There is also a provision that makes it even more explicit that separate and timely declarations of intent must be filed with each party whose nomination a candidate seeks.