On April 11, the West Virginia Senate passed HB 2981, the bill to improve ballot access. It had already passed the House. The bill lowers the petition from 2% of the last vote cast, to 1%. It also moves the non-presidential petition deadline from May to August, so that it now matches the presidential petition deadline. Passage of this bill is certainly the most significant ballot access legislation that has passed any state legislature this year.
Assuming the bill is signed into law, the only states that will have no procedure for a minor party or independent presidential candidate to get on the ballot, that is at or below 2% of last vote cast in a midterm year, will be North Carolina and Oklahoma.
Alabama’s procedure is 3% of the Gubernatorial election from 2006 – which is higher than 2%; although a bill was introduced to lower it to 1.5%
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Darryl,
But we have the 5000 signature independent candidate procedure.
“paul Says:
April 12th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Darryl,
But we have the 5000 signature independent candidate procedure.”
Which only applies to Presidentical candidates in Alabama.
Yes, read Richard’s statement that Darryl was responding to: “the only states that will have no procedure for a minor party or independent presidential candidate to get on the ballot, that is at or below 2% of last vote cast in a midterm year, will be North Carolina and Oklahoma.”
Alabama does have such a method, the 5000 signature petition. Thus Richard is correct.
Richard’s statement is referring to MID-TERM ELECTIONS – not Presidential elections.
Richard’s statement is referring to MID-TERM ELECTIONS – not Presidential elections.
Actually, his statement (at least in terms of the elections which will be influenced by this bill) is referring to presidential elections, and more specifically, to the presidential race in that election:
the only states that will have no procedure for a minor party or independent presidential candidate to get on the ballot,
The mid-term elections are relevant only as the determiner of the petition baseline.
I misread – sorry.
No problem.
And Ohio still sucks . SOS making up directives, going to court, etc. All because there IS no law on petitioning. Almost a blessing, because the courts recognize the Assembly is asleep and therefore, something has to be done.
Virginia requires 10% of vote in statewide race to win ballot status, and allows the party to remain on the ballot for 4 years.
Technically, Carey Campbell is incorrect. Virginia allows a party to remain on the ballot through the next two statewide elections. That length of time varies, depending on the year.