A group of Washington state minor party activists have been meeting with each other, and have finished drafting proposed legislation which would improve ballot access for minor parties. Currently, Washington is the only state in the western half of the United States which lacks any procedure by which a group can transform itself into a qualified party, in advance of any particular election. Instead, all Washington state has are procedures for the nominees of unqualified parties to get on the ballot. If one of those statewide nominees gets 5% of the vote, then and only then does that group become a qualified party.

The draft bill would provide that if a group submits 1,000 signatures by May of an election year, then it is a qualified minor party. It then may nominate by convention, and all its nominees are automatically placed on the general election ballot. The draft also provides that if one of that party’s statewide nominees polls 1% of the vote, it retains its qualified status.

The group is looking for legislators who will sponsor the bill. To get in touch with the group, contact Linde Knighton at waprog2@yahoo.com.