The District of Columbia city council writes election laws for the District. The D.C. city council Committee on Government Operations will hold a hearing on Monday, July 13, at 11 a.m, on Bill 18-345, the “Omnibus Election Reform Act of 2009.” The bill makes ballot access worse. Bill Redpath, national chair of the Libertarian Party, and Brent McMillan, Political Director of the Green Party, expect to testify that the bill should be amended to improve ballot access, not make it more difficult.

The District of Columbia requires more signatures, as a percentage of the number of voters, for minor party and independent presidential candidates, than any other jurisdiction in the U.S., except for Oklahoma, North Carolina and Wyoming. In 2008 only one presidential petition succeeded in the District. The bill as introduced does not change the number of signatures, but it authorizes the Board to add filing fees in addition to the existing signatures.