U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter has asked attorneys for Herb Hoffman whether Hoffman merely needs a stay of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court opinion, or whether he needs an injunction from the U.S. Supreme Court putting Hoffman on the ballot. Justice Souter handles emergency requests for most New England states while the U.S. Supreme Court is not sitting.
This is a good sign that Justice Souter is interested in the Hoffman ballot access case. While nothing concrete has happened, it shows that Souter is taking Hoffman’s request seriously. Hoffman is the independent candidate for U.S. Senate in Maine. See the post of August 15 for a description of his ballot access problem. The U.S. Supreme Court hasn’t given injunctive relief, putting a candidate on a ballot, since 1990. when that Court put the Harold Washington Party on the Cook County, Illinois ballot, for its candidates for county office.
The Hoffman ballot access case in the U.S. Supreme Court is 08A138.
Hoffman is not asking the U.S. Supreme Court to put him on the ballot. He is seeking prevent his being taken off the ballot.
Hoffman has held ballot position since his nominating petitions were certified by the Maine Secretary of State back in June. The Maine Democratic Party has been trying to get him off the ballot since that time. The Maine Secretary of State twice denied the Democrats’ appeal that three of Hoffman’s petitions should be declared void. The Maine Superior Court also denied an appeal by the Democrats and upheld the Secretary of State’s decision. Then the Maine Supreme Judicial Court sided with Democrats and ruled that the three petitions should be declared void.
Hoffman’s motion to Souter is an emergency application seeking a stay of that Maine Supreme Court ruling. If the Maine Supreme Court ruling is stayed, Hoffman will remain on the ballot. If the stay — and a similar motion to stay filed with the Maine Supreme Court– is denied, the Maine Supreme Court will order the Maine Superior Court to overrule the decision by the Maine Secretary of State that the three petitions are valid. If those three petitions are found to be invalid, then Hoffman will fall below the 4,000-signature minimum needed to qualify for the ballot. In that case, the Secretary of State will take action consistent with that finding, which in all likelihood means Hoffman’s name will be removed from the ballot. But as of this writing he IS on the ballot and has been all along.
The Democratic Party and the mainstream media have been reporting that the Maine Supreme Court took Hoffman off that ballot..That is not an accurate accounting of the Maine Supreme Court’s ruling, which states:
Judgment of the Superior Court vacated.
Remanded to the Superior Court for entry of
judgment vacating the Secretary of State’s
decision, and for further action consistent with
this opinion.
The MORON media NOT accurately reporting what happens ??? Shocking ??? NO — just media business- as- usual — almost worthless.
——-
Separate is NOT equal.
Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954)
Way too difficult for the armies of MORON lawyers doing (and losing) ballot access cases for third party and independent candidates since 1968 — a mere 40 years of TOTAL legal malpractice by such MORON lawyers — especially the mini-armies of MORON LP lawyers since 1971.
EQUAL nominating petitions for ALL candidates for the same office in the same area.
Separate is NOT equal.
Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954)
Way too difficult for the armies of MORON lawyers doing (and losing) ballot access cases for third party and independent candidates since 1968 — a mere 40 years of TOTAL legal malpractice by such MORON lawyers — especially the mini-armies of MORON LP lawyers since 1971.
EQUAL nominating petitions for ALL candidates for the same office in the same area.
P.R.- legislative and Approval Voting- executive / judicial.
NO need for any MORON party hack extremist caucuses, primaries and conventions.