Green Party Rally to Draw Attention to Public Funding Changes in HR 1

Posted on by April 1, 2019
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The news media has failed to tell the public that HR 1, the Democratic Party-sponsored election bill that has already passed the US House, makes it far more difficult for presidential candidates to qualify for primary season public funding. The Green Party will hold a Lobby Day on April 3 in Washington, DC, to publicize the problem. There will be speakers on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court at 3 pm, and a public meeting at Busboys and Poets, 450 K St., NW, in the evening. The speakers include Craig Holman of Public Citizen, Justin Jacoby Smith of the Institute for Policy Studies, and Howie Hawkins, who may seek the Green Party presidential nomination in 2020.

North Carolina Ballot Access Plaintiffs Ask Judge to Act on Lawsuit Filed in 2017

Posted on by April 1, 2019
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Even though North Carolina’s legislature greatly improved ballot access in late 2017, there are still some very bad ballot access laws in that state, especially for independent candidates. The petition deadline for independent candidates is in February, which is clearly unconstitutional. In 1980 the state had lost a lawsuit challenging the April petition deadline for independent candidates, and had then improved the deadline, but in early 2017 moved the deadline back to February.

Another problem is that the statewide independent petition requires far more signatures than the number of signatures for a newly-qualifying party. In 2004 a federal court in North Carolina ruled that the state could not require more signatures for a statewide independent candidate than for a new party. The state corrected the problem, but then seemingly forgot about that and reinstated the problem in 2017.

A lawsuit challenging various aspects of the independent petition procedure was filed in 2017, but nothing has happened in the case since June 2018, when the State filed a motion to dismiss the case. On March 28, 2019, the plaintiffs filed a motion with the court, asking for a statement about the status of the case. The case is Leifert v North Carolina State Board of Elections, m.d., 1:17cv-147.

March 2019 Ballot Access News Print Edition

Posted on by March 31, 2019
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Ballot Access News
March 1, 2019 – Volume 34, Number 10

This issue was printed on green paper.

Table of Contents

  1. ARKANSAS ENACTS SEVERE BALLOT ACCESS LAW THAT HAD TWICE PREVIOUSLY BEEN HELD UNCONSTITUTIONAL
  2. NINTH CIRCUIT REJECTS CALIFORNIA REHEARING REQUEST
  3. OHIO SEEMS TO KEEP LIBERTARIAN PARTY ON BALLOT
  4. DELAWARE CAN’T BAR INDEPENDENT VOTERS FROM BEING JUDGES
  5. U.S. SUPREME COURT SETS CONFERENCE DATE FOR UTAH REPUBLICAN CASE
  6. OHIO WIN FOR INITIATIVES
  7. MARYLAND LIBERTARIANS DENIED INJUNCTIVE RELIEF
  8. ARKANSAS DEADLINE IMPROVEMENT
  9. THREE BALLOT ACCESS BILLS LOSE
  10. NEW YORK EASES PRIMARY ACCESS FOR 2019 ONLY
  11. BALLOT ACCESS BILLS INTRODUCED
  12. UTAH BILL TO END STRAIGHT-TICKET DEVICE ADVANCES
  13. COLORADO JOINS NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE COMPACT
  14. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE TAX RETURNS BILLS
  15. BILLS TO ALTER PRIMARY SYSTEMS
  16. CALIFORNIA PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY BALLOT ACCESS BILL
  17. BOOK REVIEW: PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS AND THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE
  18. BOOK REVIEW: INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM ALMANAC
  19. VOTING AGE BILLS
  20. UPCOMING ORAL ARGUMENTS IN BALLOT ACCESS CASES
  21. LAWSUITS WHICH ENJOINED OR OVERTURNED EARLY PETITION DEADLINES
  22. TWO LEGISLATORS SWITCH PARTIES
  23. SOCIALIST PARTY WILL NOMINATE FOR PRESIDENT IN OCTOBER
  24. WILLIAM WELD WILL SEEK REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION
  25. CONNECTICUT INDEPENDENT PARTY
  26. NEW YORK BILL TO DEPRIVE INDEPENDENCE PARTY OF ITS NAME ADVANCES
  27. LYNDON LAROUCHE DIES
  28. SUBSCRIBING TO BAN WITH PAYPAL

Prohibition Party 2020 Presidential Nominee Withdraws

Posted on by March 31, 2019
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Recently, Bill Bayes withdrew as the Prohibition Party nominee for president in 2020.  He had been nominated on November 13, 2018 in a conference call of party activists.  A new such telephone conference will be held soon to replace him.  Bayes lives in Mississippi and had been the party’s vice-presidential nominee in 2016.  Thanks to Rick Knox for this news.