Ballot Access News

As noted previously, five candidates had filed to appear on the Indiana Republican presidential primary, including an unknown, Patricia Sandifer. Indiana law lets anyone on the ballot, no matter if they only file one signature, if no one challenges their petition. On February 16, someone challenged Sandifer’s petition, which only has one signature on it, so she is now off the ballot. See this story.

The only remaining uncertainty is whether Rick Santorum will be on that ballot. That will be decided on February 24, when the challenge to the Santorum petition is adjudicated by the Indiana Election Commission. The only candidates whose ballot status is confirmed now are Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, and Mitt Romney. Write-ins are not allowed in Indiana primaries, even though Indiana permits write-ins at the general election.

On February 16, the New Jersey Supreme Court issued an opinion in In re: Contest of November 8, 2011 General Election of Office of the New Jersey General Assembly, A58-11. By a vote of 4-3, the Court upheld a challenge to the eligibility of Gabriela Mosquera to be seated in the lower house of the legislature, because she had not lived in the district for a full year. The New Jersey Constitution requires candidates for the legislature to meet that duration of residency requirement. Mosquera argued that the New Jersey Constitution violates the U.S. Constitution, but that argument did not prevail.

Mosquera, a Democratic Party nominee, won the election last November, and she wasn’t challenged until after the election. However, by now she has lived in the district a full year. When a legislative seat is vacant in New Jersey, that seat is filled by the party that won the last election for that seat. The Democratic Party is expected to appoint her to fill the vacancy. She will then be required to run in November, 2012, to retain her seat.

Now that the 3-judge U.S. District Court in San Antonio has informally told the major parties that their primaries will be no earlier than May 29, and possibly later, the Republican Party is planning to change the tradition that precinct conventions are held the evening of primary day. The party is working on a plan to hold precinct conventions, and county conventions, before the primary. See this message from the party leadership.