Fourth Circuit Will Hear Case on Ballot Order of Candidates in Mid-May

Posted on by February 18, 2016
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The Fourth Circuit will hear Sarvis v Alcorn on May 10, 11, or 12; the exact date hasn’t been set yet. This is the case that challenges the Virginia law that says the nominees of the qualified parties always appear first on the ballot. The plaintiff, Rob Sarvis, was the Libertarian nominee for U.S. Senate in 2014 and all the ballots listed the Democratic and Republican nominees ahead of him. The only qualified parties in Virginia during the last nineteen years have been the Republican and Democratic nominees.

The U.S. District Court said that being listed first on the ballot is an advantage, but that the law is constitutional because states have an interest in bolstering the two major parties against all their competitors. Here is the Sarvis reply brief.

Independent Party Files Federal Lawsuit to Win “Political Body” Status for Itself in California

Posted on by February 18, 2016
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On February 16, the Independent Party filed a federal lawsuit against the California Secretary of State, over the state’s refusal to recognize the Independent Party as a political body. In California, a group becomes a qualified party by persuading approximately 60,000 voters to register into it. The exact percentage is .33% of the number of registered voters. The case is Independent Party v Padilla, eastern district, 2:16cv-316.

When a group desires to qualify, it files for “Political Body” status. Then the Secretary of State directs county election officials to tally up the number of people who register into that party. The law permits a new political body to ask that persons who registered into that party in the past, and who are still registered with it, to be counted.

The Independent Party filed for political body status in March 2015, but the Secretary of State refused to list it as a political body, on the grounds that the name is too similar to the name of the already-qualified American Independent Party. However, the previous Secretary of State allowed Americans Elect to become a qualified party in 2011, even though the American Independent Party was already on the ballot. Also the current Secretary of State has allowed the American Freedom Party to file as a political body. In 1896 the California Supreme Court ruled in Craig v Brown that the National Democratic Party had a right to get on the ballot, even though the Democratic Party was already on the ballot. In 1912 California permitted the Socialist Labor Party to be on the ballot in one Assembly district, even though the Socialist Party was already on the ballot. Also the current Secretary of State has allowed two different political bodies to file recently, even though they both share a word in common. They are the California National Party and the Independent California Party.

Parties named “Independent Party” are on the ballot in Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, and Oregon. Independent Parties were also on the ballot in the recent past in Arkansas, Maryland, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Utah.

Incumbent County Official in Alabama Wins Ballot Access Lawsuit

Posted on by February 17, 2016
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On February 17, the Elmore County, Alabama Circuit Court ruled that Andre Harrison may be on the November 2016 ballot as an independent candidate for County School Superintendent, if he has enough valid signatures. Harrison is the incumbent and had been elected in 2012 as a Republican. But he was kept off the March 2016 Republican primary ballot on a technicality.

Therefore, he petitioned to be an independent candidate, but his opponent claimed that Harrison is a “sore loser”, because he had filed for the Republican primary. But the court ruled that a “sore loser” is someone who actually appeared on a primary ballot and was defeated in that primary. The case is Enslen v Harrison, cv-2016-9. See this article, which has a copy of the opinion.

No New Parties Qualify in Utah This Year

Posted on by February 17, 2016
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No new parties have submitted 2,000 signatures to be ballot-qualified in Utah this year. The deadline was February 16. Parties already on the ballot are Democratic, Republican, Libertarian, Constitution, and Independent American.

Utah only requires statewide independent candidates to submit 1,000 signatures, with a later deadline. Candidates who use the independent procedure can choose a partisan label, such as “Green”, and that appears on the ballot adjacent to the candidate’s name.

New Mexico Legislature Passes Bill, Letting 17-Year-Olds Vote in Primary if they Will be Age 18 in November

Posted on by February 17, 2016
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On February 17, the New Mexico State Senate passed HB 138 by 24-16. It says if a citizen will be age 18 by the time of the general election, he or she can register to vote in the primary, even though the person would only be age 17 at the time of the primary. The bill had passed the House on February 8 by 41-26. The bill would not take effect until 2017. See this story.