On February 24, the South Carolina House passed HB 3262 by 97-12. It imposes filing fees on individuals who seek the nomination of a party that nominates by convention. Realistically the bill only affects minor parties. Under current law, only individuals who run in a primary must pay a filing fee.
The bill has no provision for indigent candidates. In 1972 and again in 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states must have alternate procedures for candidates who cannot afford filing fees.
On the evening of Wednesday, February 24, the Iowa House passed SF 413, and the bill has now been sent to the Governor. The vote was 57-37. It makes changes to many types of election law. For minor party and independent candidate petitions, the bill increases their severity.
On February 23, the North Carolina State Board of Elections determined that the Green and Constitution Parties can keep their registrants, at least until June 2021. Both parties lost their qualified status in November 2020 for failing to poll 2% for either President or Governor, and also failing to have their presidential nominees on the ballot in at least 35 states. But the party’s registrants will not be forced to register some other way, at least for a few months.
Both parties will try to petition onto the ballot again by June 2021. They each need 13,757 signatures. Both parties have begun their petitioning.
North Carolina is one of the few states that forces members of parties that lose their status to eventually choose another affiliation. Most states do not disturb the registrants of disqualifed parties, and they remain in those parties as long as they wish to.
On February 23, New York city held a special election to fill the vacancy in the 31st city council seat, in Queens. This is the second New York city special election this year in which ranked choice voting has been in place. In the previous election, three weeks ago, one candidate had a majority of the first-choice votes, so there was no need to process the ballots again. But in the 31st district election, no one got a majority of the first-choice votes, so the ballots will be redistributed so that the second-choice votes, and perhaps even the third-choice votes, will determine the winner. See this story. Thanks to Richard Grayson for the link.
Special city council elections in New York city do not have party nominees. Candidates may have a partisan label, expressing their views, but the label cannot match the name of a qualified political party.
On the evening of February 23, the Virginia Republican Party decided how to nominate its statewide nominees for the 2021 election. They will hold a drive-through state convention in Lynchburg. See this story. Thanks to Political Wire for the link.
