Back on August 23, 2006, the 3rd circuit ruled adversely in the Pennsylvania ballot access lawsuit Rogers v Corbett. The issue was whether the state could force qualified parties to submit petitions for their nominees, even though those parties had fulfilled the 2% vote test at the previous election and therefore met the Pennsylvania definition of “political party”. Parties affected were the Green, Libertarian and Constitution Parties, all of which had met that statewide vote test in November 2004, and yet all of whom were being kept off the November 2006 ballot unless they submitted 67,070 signatures.

The parties asked for a rehearing, and that rehearing request is still pending, as of February 23. Generally, rehearing requests are rejected within a month or two after the initial decision, so there is some reason for optimism that the case will win a rehearing from the full 3rd circuit. Only full-time judges can vote on whether to grant a rehearing. The original decision was before one fulltime judge and two part-time judges, but those part-time judges have no vote on whether to grant the rehearing. The 3rd circuit has 10 full-time judges.