Federal Court in Illinois Again Postpones Decision in Libertarian Ballot Access Case

Posted on by March 31, 2015
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For the third time, a federal judge in Illinois has not released an opinion in Libertarian Party of Illinois v Illinois State Board of Elections, n.d., 1:12cv2511, by the date that she had said she would release it. The issue in the lawsuit is the law that requires a newly-qualifying party to run a full slate of candidates.

On February 12, 2015, the judge had said she would rule by the next status conference hearing, and set the status conference for March 11.

But on March 10, she postponed the status conference to March 24.

Then, on March 23, she postponed the status conference to April 7, but she also said at the time, “The Court will issue a ruling on the pending cross-motions for summary judgment within the week.” The week ended on Saturday, March 28, but the opinion is still not out.

Arkansas Bill Making it More Difficult to Qualify Initiatives Advances

Posted on by March 31, 2015
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On March 30, the Arkansas Senate State Agencies & Government Affairs Committee passed SB 860, which makes it more difficult for initiatives and referenda to get on the ballot. See this story. Among other things, the bill makes it a crime for any voter so sign a petition twice. Many times, individuals sign a petition twice because they don’t remember that they had already signed it. This is especially true for initiative petitions, when the petition drive may be ongoing for many months.

Idaho Bill for a Separate March Presidential Primary Passes Legislature

Posted on by March 31, 2015
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On March 31, the Idaho House passed SB 1066. It sets up a presidential primary in March. The primary for other office will continue to be in May. Assuming the Governor signs it, it is likely that in 2016, there will be Republican presidential primaries in 39 states, and 20 of them will be in March. Thanks to Josh Putnam for this news.

Mississippi Won’t Move Primary from March 8 to March 1 After All

Posted on by March 30, 2015
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Mississippi SB 2531 failed to pass, even though it had passed both chambers of the legislature. The versions of the bill were slightly different in each house, and it is now too late for a conference committee compromise. The bill would have moved the presidential primary (and the primary for all other office in presidential years) from the 2nd Tuesday in March to the 1st Tuesday in March.

As a result, it is now somewhat plausible that the Alabama bill to make the same change may not pass. The idea was to have a unified primary day for several neighbor states in the south, including Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas. Thanks to Josh Putnam for this news.