Libertarian and Green Parties Gain Qualified Status in Some States

In certain states, the Libertarian Party, or the Green Party, gained qualified status (relative to the day before the November 2016 election):

Connecticut: both parties gained qualified status for President, by polling over 1% for President. The Libertarian Party had never before done that, and the Green Party had not done it since 2000.

District of Columbia: the Libertarian Party gained qualified status with its vote for Delegate to the U.S. House. It lasts two years.

Iowa: the Libertarian Party became ballot-qualified for the first time, by polling over 2% for President. It lasts for two years.

Kentucky: the Libertarian Party became ballot-qualified for the first time, by polling over 2% for President. It lasts for four years.

Maryland: both parties met the 1% presidential vote test. This was a retention of the status quo for the Libertarian Party, and a gain for the Green Party.

Massachusetts: the Libertarian Party became ballot-qualified for the first time since the period 2008-2010. It did this by polling over 3% for President. It lasts for two years.

Missouri: the Green Party became ballot-qualified for the first time since 2000-2002. It lasts for four years.

New Hampshire: the L:bertarian Party became ballot-qualified for the first time since the period 1990-1996, by polling over 4% for Governor. It lasts two years.

New Mexico: the Libertarian Party became entitled to its own primary for the first time ever. This will make it far easier for the party to run candidates for congress, state legislature, and partisan county office. It lasts two years.

Oklahoma: the Libertarian Party, for the first time, met the vote test to remain on, 2.5% for President. It lasts two years.

Pennsylvania: both the Libertarian and Green Parties gained the slightly-useful category of “political party”, although that status does not put a party on the ballot. It restores the parties to the voter registration form and lets them nominate candidates in special elections with no petition. But they aren’t really on the ballot for all office unless they have registration of 15% of the state total.

The Green Party lost its ballot status in Massachusetts and Texas.


Comments

Libertarian and Green Parties Gain Qualified Status in Some States — 13 Comments

  1. Libertarians get into the primary in 2018 in Michigan. And so, maybe, does the new Working Class Party — depending on whether their only statewide candidate (for State Board of Education) is counted as the “principal candidate” even though two candidates for US House seats were higher up on the ballot where they appeared. See the previous “Political Party Status” report for the threshold figures (which won’t change again until after the next Secretary of State race in 2018).

    http://www.michigan.gov/documents/sos/Political_Party_Status_482649_7.pdf

    The results (with Flint’s Genesee County the only one that hasn’t finalized its tallies) are here:

    http://miboecfr.nictusa.com/election/results/2016GEN_CENR.html

  2. Will the top Donkey and Elephant oligarchs permit the USA to routinely have obvious minority rule / plurality politics as in the rotted to the core ANTI-Democracy minority rule gerrymander U,K. House of Commons — i.e. control by about 35-38 percent of the total votes ???
    —–
    SAVE Democracy
    P.R. and nonpartisan App.V.

  3. How did the Green party lost its ballot status in Texas.How many more states do the Libertarian party need to be qualified in all 50 states.

  4. Richard, I had the understanding that ballot qualification in Texas meant that at least one political candidate on a certain party’s ballot had to receive at least 5% of the vote. Two Green Party candidates received more than 5%. Stuard, Green Party, House 32nd Dist received 9.9% of the vote. Ridley, Green Party, House 36th Dist received 11.3%. I got the totals from Politico. Am I understanding this correctly? Thank you.

  5. Texas only counts statewide offices for party qualified status. Sec. 181.005(b) refers to “a statewide office.”

  6. Right so the presidential candidate is not counted for ballot access in Texas. But the good news is our RR Comm candidate did, he received over 5%!

  7. Laura, so does this mean that the Green Party retains its ballot line in Texas? I sure hope so!

  8. Lee, the Green Party is off the Texas ballot for 2018 because only statewide races count. The solution is to persuade the Texas legislature to ease the vote test.

    People don’t realize it, but half the states have made it easier for a party to remain ballot-qualified during the last 40 years. In 1976 the median vote test of the 50 states was 5%. Now it is only 2%. Hard work, talking to state legislatures, has caused this improvement. Now is the time for citizens to talk to state legislators. Now is the time when legislators are deciding which bills to introduce in 2017. Don’t wait. In some states all bills must have been introduced early in 2017.

  9. Based on the ballot qualification table a month or so ago, LP has ballot access now for 28 states:

    AK, AR, AZ, CT, IA, ID, KS, KY
    LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC
    ND, NE, NM, NV, OK, OR, RI, TN
    TX, UT, WA, WI

    And presumably, continues to have ballot access in
    CA, CO, among others.

    It’s a shame the Republocrats only grant this for 2018 is many states, but the next two elections should be very interesting.

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