On March 18, a fourth bill was introduced in the Georgia legislature to improve ballot access. Representatives Stephanie Benfield (D-Decatur) and John Lunsford (R-McDonough) introduced HB 1425. It removes all petition requirements for independent and minor party candidates.

If this bill were to pass, the number of candidates on general election ballots would still be controlled by the already-existing requirement that independent and minor party candidates pay the same large filing fee that Democrats and Republicans also already pay. Georgia has the highest filing fees of any state, other than Florida.

The other pending ballot access improvement bills are HB 1257, HB 1141, and SB 359. Thanks to Garland Favorito for this news.