On May 15, the U.S. Supreme Court again considered whether to hear Meadors v Erie County Board of Elections, 24-684. But it didn’t decide, and will consider it again on May 22. This is the case on New York’s May petition deadline for independent candidates. The Second Circuit had concluded that the case is moot, so now the chief issue in the case has been transformed into whether the case really was moot. Both sides in the Second Circuit (the plaintiff and also the Board of Elections) had agreed that it is not moot, because in 1969 the U.S. Supreme Court had said that constitutional ballot access cases are not moot just because the election is over.

The Supreme Court has considered this case at three of its conferences, and will do so again for a fourth time.

On May 13, the Pennsylvania House State Government Committee passed HB 280. It says that independents can vote in partisan primaries. The vote was 14-12, with all Democratic members of the Committee voting “yes” and all Republican members voting “No.”

John Morgan, a wealthy and well-known Florida attorney, is thinking about creating a new party in Florida and being its gubernatorial nominee. See this Politico story. At the bottom the story quotes him as saying he would not run as an independent. Thanks to Gene Berkman for the link.