On June 26, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two opinions, including the very closely-watched same-sex marriage opinion. The Court said the last three opinions of the term will be out on Monday, June 29. Among them will be Arizona State Legislature v Arizona State Redistricting Commission, 13-1314. The issue is whether the state initiative process can be used to change laws affecting congressional elections, or whether only a legislature can do that.
The New York legislature has adjourned. The Assembly didn’t vote on SB 4586, which would have provided for Instant Runoff Voting for New York city’s primaries for the three citywide executive positions. The Senate had passed it on June 17.
Pennsylvania elects its State Treasurer in partisan elections, held in presidential election years. Earlier this year, the Democratic State Treasurer resigned, and Governor Tom Wolf, also a Democrat, chose Timothy Reese to replace him. Reese is a registered independent. On June 24, the Senate Committee that handles confirmation of gubernatorial appointees approved Reese for the job. Now the full Senate will vote on his appointment. Reese is a venture capitalist.
The Oklahoma Democratic Party will hold a state meeting on Saturday, July 25, and will vote on whether to let independents vote in their 2016 primary. Under the U.S. Supreme Court decision Tashjian v Republican Party of Connecticut, issued in 1986, any party with a government-administered primary has the right to decide for itself whether to let independents vote in its primaries. States cannot interfere. Neither Oklahoma major party has ever before let independents vote in its primaries, although the Libertarian Party allowed independents to vote in its primaries in 2000 and 1996.
U.S. District Court Judge James M. Moody will hold a trial in Moore v Martin on Monday, July 27, at 9:15 a.m. This is the case that challenges the Arkansas petition deadline for non-presidential independent candidates. That deadline is in March. It was in effect in 2014 and will be in effect in 2018 unless it is struck down. Ironically, after the lawsuit was filed, the Arkansas legislature moved it to November of the year before the election, for 2016 only.
Arkansas petition deadlines for non-presidential independents were struck down in 1975, 1977, and 1988. Arkansas petition deadlines for newly-qualifying parties were struck down in 1977 and 1996. One of those decisions was even summarily affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
