Third Circuit Hearing on Out-of-State Ban on Circulators for Primary Petitions

Posted on by January 19, 2018
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The Third Circuit hears Wilmuth v Guadagno, 17-1925, on Tuesday, January 23. The issue is New Jersey’s ban on out-of-state circulators for primary election petitions. The lower court had upheld the ban, on the theory that the Democratic and Republican Parties (the only parties that hold primaries in New Jersey) don’t want out-of-state circulators for candidates in their primaries. However, neither major party has ever expressed an opinion; the U.S. District Court just assumed that the major parties don’t want out-of-state circulators.

The plaintiff, Shawn Wilmuth, wanted to circulate presidential primary petitions for Republican presidential candidates in the 2016 primary. He says he is a Republican himself, but because he lives in Michigan, he was not permitted to work in New Jersey.

The three judges will be Thomas Hardiman (a Bush Jr. appointee), and Thomas Vanaskie and Patty Shwartz (Obama appointees).

Seventh Circuit Denies Voting Rights Relief to Citizens Who Once Lived in Illinois and Now Live in Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico

Posted on by January 19, 2018
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On January 18, the 7th circuit issued a 12-page opinion in Segovia v U.S., 16-4240. The plaintiffs are U.S. citizens who live in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or Guam. They cannot vote absentee in Illinois elections, even though they formerly were residents of Illinois and had been voting there. U.S. law says if they had moved out of Illinois into a foreign country, or American Samoa, or the Northern Mariana Islands, then they could continue to vote absentee in Illinois elections. But both Illinois law and federal law say they can’t continue to vote absentee in Illinois elections if they live in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or Guam.

The decision says that Illinois law doesn’t violate equal protection. The reason Illinois law treats residents of American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands differently is because it is an old law, written when the Northern Mariana Islands was a United Nations trusteeship instead of a true U.S. possession. The plaintiffs are very likely to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which, for decades now, has rejected all cases involving voting rights for citizens who live in U.S. possessions.

The opinion is by Judge Daniel Manion, a Reagan appointee; and signed by Judges Ilana Rovner, a Bush Sr. appointee, and David Hamilton, an Obama appointee.

Politico Story on California Democrats’ Fears of Being Blocked from General Election Ballot in Two U.S. House Districts

Posted on by January 19, 2018
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This lengthy Politico story by David Siders says California Democrats have high hopes of winning the 49th and 39th U.S. House districts this year, because Republican incumbents Darrell Issa and Ed Royce aren’t running for re-election, and because Hillary Clinton carried both districts in November 2016. But, there are so many Democrats running in both districts, the two people who place first and second may be Republicans.

Vladimir Putin Collects 1,500,000 Signatures on Ballot Access Petition

Posted on by January 19, 2018
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Russian President Vladimir Putin’s campaign says 1,500,000 signatures have been gathered to put him on the ballot as an independent candidate. The petition drive started January 5, 2018, and needed 300,000 signatures. The election is March 18. See this story.

Another candidate, Grigory Yavlinsky, says he has collected the needed 100,000 signatures to run. Russia requires 300,000 signatures for independent candidates, but 100,000 signatures for nominees of parties that don’t have any representatives in the national legislative body. Parties that do have such representatives do not need any signatures. See this story about Yavlinsky.