The Oregon House Rules Committee will hold a public hearing on HB 2442 on Wednesday, April13. The bill makes it illegal for any qualified party to be named the “Independent Party.” Because Oregon already has a ballot-qualified party named the Independent Party, this bill raises serious due process concerns. It would have been one thing for Oregon to have passed a law like this if there were not already such a party, but quite another to tell an existing party that it must change its name. The bill does give the Independent Party an opportunity to choose a new name for itself.
The Independent Party became ballot-qualified in 2006. It has never had a presidential nominee. The impetus for the creation of the party was that in 2005, the Oregon legislature passed a very hostile bill, making it more difficult for independent candidates to get on the ballot. The 2005 bill said that primary voters could not sign an independent candidate’s petition. People who are protective of the right of independent candidates to get on the ballot then created the Independent Party, as a vehicle to help persons who might otherwise have desired to be independent candidates. The 2005 bill did not make it more difficult for new parties to get on the ballot. Fortunately, in 2009, the Oregon legislature repealed the 2005 bill.
In all U.S. history, no state has ever passed a law, telling a party that was already ballot-qualified that it had to change its name. The closest instance was in New York. After the American Labor Party had ceased to be ballot-qualified in November 1954, the legislature passed a law saying no party could have “American” in its name, but at least the New York legislature did wait until after the party was off the ballot. The New York law is still on the books, but is probably unconstitutional.
As voters we need to remain very diligent with regard to ballot access.
In Washington State a similar thing has occured with our, “Top Two,” primary system… where only the top two primary vote getters move on to the general election.
This is undemocratic and is purposely meant to ensure the two major parties retain their prominance – despite their incredibly poor job-performance rating by constituents.
In fact, it is just that, their realization of just how much we voters dislike their performance that is rushing them to enact these restrictions.
They get it. It is time we all did as well.
Open the ballots back up.
Let the parties conduct their own primaries, at no cost to taxpayers, and submit their chosen candidate for the general election ballot.
But by all means possible… open the ballots back up.
These ballot restrictions are preposterous!
If a party had the name of *Oregon Government Party* would it be legal for the Oregon Government to ban the use of such name ???
Election law cases get more and more INSANE — par for the course in the New Age of INSANE governments.
For more info re this bill, see http://www.indparty.com/abolish
#1: Sadly, it was the voters of Washington state who enacted the “top two” monstrosity.
Under the “top two,” parties could hold primaries to choose their candidates, but I doubt that any party could afford the cost of a statewide primary. The only way primaries will be held will be if the state pays for them.
Also, if a party held a primary in advance of the “top two,” there would be no legal way that the party could prevent other candidates from that party from running in the “top two.” When the state mandates and pays for party primaries, of course, the general election ballot is limited to one candidate per party.
# 4 Top 2 stuff in NE and LA long before top 2 in WA.
P.R. and App.V. — NO primaries are needed or wanted.
Regardless of what name the established “Independent Party” is or is not this registered INDEPENDENT will not rejoin the Democratic party. This Independent party was established in Oregon in 2007 and now has over 56,000 registered voters. Apparently they are doing to good for the Oregon State Legislature.
I was a registered Democrat but that changed Nov.23,2009. I will NEVER ever vote for a democrat again under any circumstances.I am not ready to be turned into a socialist. This administration has gotten my grandchildren’s g.grandchildren in debt as soon as there born, attempted to use power,control,domination with this highway robbery Obamacare,trying to take over the financial sector, tell us what we can or cannot eat, we apparently are all suppose to buy all electric cars,use alternate energy such as solar or wind. That means here in western Oregon we live around campfires for a good 8 months and eat out of tin cans.I was not raised or educated in there kind of America or what they want America to be.
A registered INDEPENDENT(never a democrat)
I am sure that the “Oregon Government Party” would be so unpopular that the establishment parties would not bother to ban it.
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