On March 19, the Florida Supreme Court refused to remove the top-two initiative from the November 2020 ballot. Here is the opinion in Advisory Opinion to the Attorney General re: All Voters Vote in Primary Elections for State Legislature, Governor, and Cabinet, SC19-1267.
If the measure passes, it will go into effect in 2024. It does not apply to congressional elections.
On March 18, William Weld ended his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Thanks to Political Wire for this news.
On March 17 the Federal Election Commission issued an updated chart showing primary dates and filing deadlines for federal office. Thanks to Demorep for the link.
Dan Whitfield, the only independent candidate who is petitioning in the U.S. Senate race in Arkansas, has asked the Secretary of State to reduce his petition requirement from 10,000 to 4,000 signatures. Alternatively, he is asking that the deadline be changed from May 1 to mid-June.
On March 18, Alabama postponed its run-off primaries from March 31 to July 14. Here is the statement from the Secretary of State’s website, which has much verbiage about free and fair elections, but which does not extend the petitioning period, nor does it reduce the number of signatures needed for independent candidates and minor parties.
