The Houston Chronicle has this interesting article about House Bill 2504, which has passed the House and which both helps and harms minor parties.

It helps by lowering the vote test from 5% at the last election, to 2% at any of the last five elections.  It hurts by imposing filing fees on the candidates nominated by minor party conventions.  The story tends to present the bill as more favorable than unfavorable to minor parties.

The bill has not passed the State Senate yet, and time is running out for this year’s legislative session.

On May 10, state officials from Ohio and Michigan asked the U.S. Supreme Court to stay recent decisions of 3-judge U.S. District Courts concerning redistricting.  Both of the lower court recent decisions ordered the state in question to redraw U.S. House districts in time for the 2020 election.

The applications for a stay are:  Michigan Senate v League of Women Voters of Michigan, 18A-1170; and Householder v Ohio A. Philip Randolph Institute, 18A1165.

Both applications were addressed to Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who will surely refer each to all members of the Court.

On May 10, the Texas House passed HB 2504.  It requires candidates nominated in convention to pay filing fees.  Currently only primary candidates pay filing fees, because Texas filing fees were always intended to help pay for the election administration costs of primaries.  The Libertarian Party is the only party on the ballot now that nominates by convention.  In the recent past, the Green Party did also.  The bill passed 77-57, with all Republicans who voted voting “yes”, and all Democrats except one who voted, voting “no.”

The bill also says that if a party polled at least 2% for any statewide race in any of the last five elections, it is ballot-qualified.  If this provision becomes law, the Green Party will be on the ballot in 2020, because in 2016 it polled over 2% for Railroad Commissioner and two statewide judicial races.  Thanks to Jim Riley for this news.