The Daily Oklahoman has this article about the run-off primaries set for August 24.  Paul Ziriax, Secretary of the Oklahoma Election Board, says this is the last year the state can legally hold a primary and a run-off primary that are only four weeks apart.  This year, the primaries were on July 27 and the run-off primaries are on August 24.  But federal law requires overseas absentee ballots to be mailed at least 45 days before the election, although some states got waivers this year.

Oklahoma’s constitution requires all parties to nominate by primary.  Therefore, these changes will mean moving the petition deadline (for a new party to get on the ballot)  to a date earlier than the current requirement, which is May 1.  Assuming the legislature refuses to eliminate the run-off primary, the first primary will need to be moved to early July.  Then, the petition to qualify a new party will need to be moved to early April.  But, federal courts have been unanimous that petition deadlines to create a new party cannot be earlier than May.  There is no reported decision in any state that upholds a mandatory deadline for a new party to qualify itself that is earlier than May.

The only two states that have state constitutional provisions requiring that all new parties nominate by primary are Ohio and Oklahoma.  Ohio has not had a valid procedure for a new party to qualify itself since 2006.  The old law was struck down because of the early petition deadline, and so for the time being, Ohio is letting every organized minor party that can show it has a modicum of support get on the ballot with no petition.  Oklahoma may find itself in the same situation in 2012.  Thanks to Richard Prawdienzski for the link.

A state cannot justify an early petition deadline to qualify a party, just because it holds an early primary and requires all new parties to nominate by primary.  States in which the petition deadline was struck down, even though the state said the deadline must be early because the new party must participate in a primary, are Arkansas, Idaho, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, and South Dakota.  A somewhat similar case is pending in Tennessee.  Also, two U.S. District Courts in South Carolina have ruled that South Carolina can’t require the normal deadlines for party conventions to be applied to newly-qualifying parties.