High Level Democrats Form Group for Redistricting Reform

Posted on by October 17, 2016
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Politico here reports that high-level figures in the national Democratic Party have formed the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, which will work for redistricting reform. The group will sponsor statewide ballot initiatives, and also fund lawsuits. The group will have far more credibility if it attacks gerrymanders created by Democrats, as well as gerrymanders created by Republicans. Illinois is an example of a state in which Democrats have gerrymandered the U.S. House and legislative districts, and in which Democrats have fought against redistricting reform.

Republican PAC that Supports Republican Nominee for U.S. House in Arizona is Also Spending for the Green Nominee in Same Race

Posted on by October 17, 2016
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According to this story, Effective Leadership for America, a Republican PAC that supports the Republican nominee for U.S. House, Arizona First District, is also spending money to boost the Green Party nominee in the same race. The incumbent Democrat. Ann Kirkpatrick, is not running for re-election. In 2014 she defeated her Republican opponent 97,391 to 87,723. No minor party or independent candidates were in this race in 2014.

The 2016 Green Party nominee in this race, Ray Parrish, was nominated in the 2016 Green Party primary with 66 write-in votes. A Libertarian, Kim Allen, ran in the Libertarian primary in this district this year. Allen received 144 write-ins in the Libertarian primary. But under discriminatory Arizona election laws, the Green candidate only needed one write-in to be nominated in his primary, whereas the Libertarian needed several hundred. So the Green is on the November ballot but the Libertarian is not. This law was written in 2015 by the Republican-majority in the legislature, and is being challenged in U.S. District Court by the Libertarian Party. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.

Martin Babinec, Reform Party U.S. House Candidate in Upstate New York, at 24% in Poll

Posted on by October 16, 2016
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A poll released at the end of September for U.S. House, New York 22nd district, has these results: Republican Claudia Tenney 35%; Democrat Kim Myers 30%; independent candidate Martin Babinec 24%; undecided 11%.

Babinec won the Reform Party nomination in June with write-ins. He is the only New York Reform Party nominee for Congress who is not the same person as the Republican nominee. Normally the Reform Party of New York operates as a satellite of the Republican Party. Babinec has spent $1,000,000 for his campaign, and is a businessman.

The 22nd district is usually a safe district for Republicans. The incumbent is not running for re-election. Babinec has been allowed into all the debates. The 22nd district is in central New York and runs from Lake Ontario to the Pennsylvania border. It includes Utica and Binghampton. Thanks to Michael Drucker for this news.

Cert Petition in Virginia Case on Order of Candidates on the Ballot is Now Due December 17

Posted on by October 16, 2016
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Rob Sarvis, the Virginia Libertarian nominee for U.S. Senate in 2014, will file his cert petition with the U.S. Supreme Court on or before December 17. The issue in the case is the Virginia law that says the parties that polled 10% in one of the two previous elections are always automatically listed at the top of the ballot. The lower federal courts had upheld the law, writing that even though they agree that being listed at the top of the ballot is advantageous, that the state has an interest in bolstering the two largest political parties against all those competing with them.

Virginia law itself acknowledges the fairness of ballot rotation, because the law says there should be a random process in every election to determine whether the Republican nominees or the Democratic nominees are listed first or second.

The Sarvis cert petition would have been due this month, but Sarvis received an extension. The Coalition for Free & Open Elections (COFOE) is helping pay for the printing of the cert petition. COFOE thanks all the people who have contributed to COFOE this year. COFOE gets all its revenue from readers of Ballot Access News.