North Carolina Lawsuit Challenging Independent Petition Requirements Gets a Fresh Start

Posted on by May 22, 2018
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A U.S. District Court in North Carolina recently granted permission for a pending ballot access case to get a fresh start, and for the plaintiffs to file an amended complaint. Here is the Complaint in Leifert v Strach, m.d., 1:17cv-147. The case attacks the provisions for independent candidates to get on the ballot, which are far more severe than the procedures for newly-qualifying parties. It also attacks the requirement that nominees of qualified parties that nominate by convention must pay a filing fee, and the failure of the state to let voters register into unqualified parties, and the mandatory petitions for write-in candidates.

U.S. District Court Will Soon Decide Whether to Convene a 3-Judge Court for Lawsuit on Population of California Legislative Districts

Posted on by May 22, 2018
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On May 22, U.S. District Court Judge Kimberly Mueller issued an order in Citizens for Fair Representation v Padilla, e.d., 2:17cv-973. She cancelled the oral argument of June 1, and said she will soon issue a decision on whether this case will be referred to a 3-judge U.S. District Court, without benefit of oral argument on that.

This is the lawsuit that says the population of California legislative districts (approximately 1,000,000 per State Senate district, and 500,000 for Assembly districts) is so large, California voters no longer have meaningful opportunities to communicate with their state legislators, and that this situation violates the U.S. Constitution.

Media Will Probably Alter Traditional Exit Polls for a New Approach

Posted on by May 22, 2018
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This NPR story says the traditional exit poll will probably no longer be carried out in the United States. Instead there will be more pre-election polling just days before the election, to capture information about the millions of persons who vote early, and also to account for the fact that more conservative voters are less willing to cooperate with exit pollsters.

Illinois State Senator Sam McCann Loses Lawsuit Over His Expulsion from the Republican Illinois Senate Caucus

Posted on by May 21, 2018
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On May 21, Illinois State Senator Sam McCann mostly lost his lawsuit against Senator William E. Brady, the leader of the Republicans in the State Senate. McCann v Brady, n.d., 1:18cv-3115. Here is the 18-page opinion. Senator McCann had announced earlier that he was leaving the Republican Party and would run as the Conservative Party nominee for Governor this year. But he still considered himself a member of the Republican caucus, so when he was expelled, he sued.

The decision says that state legislators, along with members of Congress, have immunity for actions taken in their legislative actions. It says, “The doctrine of legislative immunity restricts the ability of individuals to bring private civil suits against legislators for damages or injunctive relief…The concept of legislative immunity arises from the Speech or Debate Clause of Article I of the United States Constitution, which states, with regard to members of the United States Congress, that ‘for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.”

The decision says that possibly McCann can sue the Republican Caucus, and gives him an opportunity to file an amended Complaint. The caucus is already a defendant in the case, but the briefs did not flesh out McCann’s case against the caucus.