The D.C. Circuit will hear Gary Johnson, et al v Commission on Presidential Debates on Friday, April 21. This is the case in which Jill Stein and Gary Johnson argue that the Commission on Presidential Debates was in violation of the federal anti-trust laws when it excluded them from the 2012 debates.
All the briefs are in. The Commission’s brief was filed March 2 and the candidates’ reply brief was filed March 15.
On March 15, Nebraska LB 25 passed the Government, Military, and Veterans Affairs Committee unanimously. Existing law says a party remains on the ballot if it polls 5% for any statewide office, at either of the last two elections. The bill adds a second method; it also stays on the ballot as long as it has at least 10,000 registrations. The author of the bill is State Senator Laura Ebke, who is a member of the Libertarian Party. The Libertarian Party has more than 10,000 registered members. Currently it is the only party on the ballot except for the Republican and Democratic Parties.
On March 13, the Texas House Elections Committee passed HB 25, the bill to eliminate the straight-ticket device. The five Republicans on the committee voted “yes”; the two Democrats voted “no.”
Many witnesses testified in favor of the bill. Election officials from several large counties pointed out problems caused by the straight-ticket device. Some voters use the straight-ticket device but then vote for an individual nominee from the same party, just to emphasize that they want to vote for that individual. But that action actually erases the effect of the straight ticket device for that one particular nominee, which causes the voter to not vote for that race.
The League of Independent Voters, the Libertarian Party, and the Green Party testified for the bill. The only two groups that testified against it were the Democratic Party and the NAACP. Thanks to Jim Riley for this news.
On March 13, South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard signed HB 1035, which makes it illegal for groups to pay circulators on a per-signature basis, for petitions to establish a new qualified party.
On March 9, the Utah legislature passed HB 204. It says in future presidential years, Utah will hold presidential primaries. The bill does not include details such as how candidates get on the ballot, or when the primary will be, or whether all qualified parties are included. Those will be fleshed out in next year’s legislature session.
