Professor Lawrence Lessig is actively working to create a SuperPAC that would spend its money to help congressional candidates who will work to pass a public funding bill in 2015. The SuperPac has been soliciting pledges. The pledges will not be payable unless the effort reaches a goal of $5,000,000 in pledges by the end of July 4, Hawaii time. As of 1:30 p.m. Hawaii time, $4,778,325 has been pledged.

If the SuperPac, called MayDay, reaches its goal, the funds will be more than matched by various wealthy individuals, and the PAC will have $12,000,000, or close to it. That money could then be used for independent expenditures in favor of congressional candidates who will work for public funding. The plan is to spend the money in 5 U.S. House districts, and those districts will be chosen and announced by July 15.

See mayday.us for more information. One possible disincentive for some potential donors is that the donation part of the web page asks donors if they wish the money spent on Democratic candidates, or Republican candidates. There is no option for the donor to ask that the money be spent on a candidate not nominated by either major party.

Meanwhile, the bill in the U.S. House for public funding, H.R. 20, now has 156 co-sponsors. It gained six co-sponsors in May, but only two in June. Thanks to Jacqui Deveneau for the link.

UPDATE: Lessig’s goal was met. The web page shows pledges of $5,160,429.

No statewide initiative has qualified in Nebraska since 2008, but it is likely that the 2014 ballot will have an initiative to raise the minimum wage. See this story, which says that proponents submitted 135,000 signatures. They needed 81,000. There is also a county distribution requirement, which is under attack in a federal lawsuit now pending, Bernbeck v Gale, 8:13cv-228. Thanks to Doug McNeil for the link.

On July 3, James T. Parker, an independent incumbent on the New Mexico Public Education Commission, filed a federal lawsuit against the state law that requires him to submit the signatures of 3% of the last gubernatorial vote (within the district in which he is running), whereas minor party nominees need a petition of 1% of the last gubernatorial vote. Parker v Duran, 1:14cv-617.

Parker is an incumbent because he was appointed by the Governor. The Public Education Commission is elected on a partisan basis. No independent candidate has ever appeared on the ballot for that office. The number of candidates for this office is so low, there has never been a general election for that office with more than two candidates on the ballot.

New Mexico law has always been hostile to independent candidates. The state did not have procedures for independent candidates until 1977. The state’s first law for independent candidates required the signatures of 5% of the last vote cast, due in March, and the petition could not start to circulate until January. The petition deadline was declared unconstitutional in 1980. The 5% was lowered to 3% in 1991, but New Mexico still has one of the most onerous petition burdens in the nation.

Parker needed 2,196 valid signatures. He submitted 1,379. If he had been the nominee of a minor party, he would have needed 732 valid signatures.