Alaska Senate Bill 161 has a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, March 16, at 1:30 p.m. It eases the definition of a qualified party. Here is the sponsor’s one-page letter, setting forth details about the bill.
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On March 14, the Arizona Senate passed SB 1460 by 17-12. Among other things, it allows independent candidates to use electronic signatures. Arizona already lets candidates running in primaries use electronic signatures.
Unfortunately, the bill also moves the deadline to file as a declared write-in candidate from 40 days before the election or primary, to 106 days before.
According to this story, the former Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Sharpe James, has filed a lawsuit in state court to obtain a place on the May 2022 ballot as a candidate for city council. A 2008 court order ruled that James could never again hold public office in New Jersey. The Mayor says there is a distinction between holding public office and running for public office, and he should be allowed to run, even if he could not be seated should he win the election.
On March 14, some Louisiana voters filed a federal lawsuit against the boundaries of the new legislative districts. They charge the new district lines violate the federal Voting Rights Act. Nairne v Ardoin, m.d., 3:22cv-178. Here is the complaint.
Louisiana doesn’t elect state legislators until 2023.
There are Tennessee bills to improve ballot access pending in each house of the legislature. They cut the number of signatures for party recognition from 2.5% of the last gubernatorial vote, to one-half of 1% of the last gubernatorial vote.
HB 2067 had been scheduled for a House floor vote on March 14, but the day’s session didn’t get to the bill, so it will be brought up on the next day on which the House is in session. SB 2189 has a hearing in the Senate Local Government Committee on March 15, Tuesday. UPDATE: the House floor vote on HB 2067 will be Thursday, March 17.