On May 17, the Alaska House passed SB 161 by a vote of 37-2. It eases the definition of a qualified political party, from a group with registration equal to 3% of the last vote cast (approximately 11,000 members) to exactly 5,000 registered members. Assuming the Governor signs the bill, the immediate effect will be to restore the Libertarian Party’s qualified status. Obviously it will also make it easier for the Green Party to regain its status. The Green Party now has 1,490 registrants, but back in October 2002 it had 4,789.
The two representatives who voted “no” are George Rauscher and Sarah Vance, both Republicans.
It should be as easy to run for presidential elector in Alaska as it it is US Senator, US Representative, or Governor-Lieutenant Governor. The a slate of three elector candidates file, and optionally designate a presidential-vice presidential candidate they intend to vote for. (If they designate a candidate, that candidate must give affirmative consent). The elector candidates would have their party/group affiliation appear on the ballot.
Alaska could eliminate this nonsense about a party being “qualified”.