Pennsylvania Green Party Asks State Supreme Court to Put Cheri Honkala on Ballot for Special Legislative Election

Posted on by February 27, 2017
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On February 21, the Pennsylvania Green Party asked the State Supreme Court to put Cheri Honkala on the March 21 special election ballot (for the state representative vacant seat in the 197th district). The case is Green Party of Pennsylvania v Department of State, 11 MAP 2017.

The link to the party’s brief also includes the order of the lower court, which had denied the request. The issue is the deadline for filing paperwork to be on the ballot. The statute appears to contradict itself. One reference in the statute suggests the deadline was January 30, but another suggests it is January 31. The party filed on January 31.

New York Times Carries Obituary for Jerome Tuccille, the Libertarian Party’s Second Gubernatorial Candidate

Posted on by February 26, 2017
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The New York Times has this obituary for Jerome Tuccille. He was tied for being the second Libertarian Party gubernatorial candidate on the ballot in any state. The party had no gubernatorial candidates in any state until 1973, when John Goodson was on in New Jersey. Tuccille got on the ballot in New York in 1974 and polled 10,503 votes. The party only had one other gubernatorial candidate in 1974 on the ballot in any state, in Minnesota. Thanks to Mark Axinn for the link.

February 2017 Ballot Access News Print Edition

Posted on by February 26, 2017
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Ballot Access News
February 1, 2017 – Volume 32, Number 9

This issue was printed on gray paper.

Table of Contents

  1. BILLS TO EASE BALLOT ACCESS PENDING IN ELEVEN STATES
  2. NEW HOPE FOR PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES
  3. BILLS TO USE RANKED-CHOICE FOR ALL PARTISAN ELECTIONS
  4. BILLS TO ELIMINATE STRAIGHT-TICKET
  5. BILLS TO INJURE BALLOT ACCESS
  6. MARYLAND GOVERNOR DELETES BALLOT ACCESS IMPROVEMENT
  7. BOOK REVIEW: THE INEVITABLE PARTY
  8. NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE PLAN BILLS
  9. 2016 MINOR PARTY STATE HOUSE VOTE
  10. 2016 MINOR PARTY STATE SENATE VOTE
  11. 2016 PRESIDENTIAL VOTE TOTALS
  12. TWELVE INDEPENDENTS ELECTED TO STATE LEGISLATURES IN 2016
  13. SUBSCRIBING TO BAN WITH PAYPAL

Delaware Special Election Results

Posted on by February 26, 2017
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Delaware held a special State Senate election, 10th district, on Saturday, February 25. The results: Democrat Stephanie Hansen 7,314 (58.13%); Republican John Marino 5,127 (40.75%); Libertarian Joseph D. Lanzendorfer 139 (1.12%).

When this seat had been up last time, in November 2014, the results had been: Democrat Bethany Hall-Long 6,230 (51.1%); Republican John Marino 5,963 (48.9%).

This month’s special election was key to determining which party would have a majority in the State Senate, so spending was the greatest ever in the history of Delaware State Senate elections. It is extremely rare to have a special legislative election (on an off-day in the normal election season) and have more votes cast in the special election, than had been cast in the last regularly-scheduled election, but that happened in this instance. The November 2014 total vote had been 12,293; this special election total vote is 12,580.

Pennsylvania Democratic Nominee Removed from the Ballot in Special Legislative Election

Posted on by February 25, 2017
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Pennsylvania holds a special election for State House, 197th district, on March 21. This district is overwhelmingly Democratic and is in Philadelphia. On February 24, the Democratic nominee was removed from the ballot, after a state court determined he is not a resident of the district.

This is the same race in which Cheri Honkala, the Green Party nominee, was also removed from the ballot because one of her candidate forms was one day late. See this story. Pennsylvania does permit write-ins, so the fact that the Republican nominee is the only name on the ballot does not guarantee that the Republican will win.