On May 14, U.S. District Court Judge Stephen J. Murphy upheld Michigan’s procedure for newly-qualifying parties to get on the ballot, in a case filed by Socialist Party candidate and activist Matt Erard. The case is Erard v Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, eastern district, 2:12cv-13627. Here is the 24-page opinion.

Erard had complained about the law barring out-of-state residents from working on petitions for a newly-qualifying party, but the opinion construes Michigan’s new law (HB 5152, signed into law on April 3, 2014) to mean that such petitioners can be circulated by out-of-state residents. This conclusion is not completely obvious from the text of the law itself, but of course it is valuable. Erard had complained that even if the new law is read this way, he should still obtain relief because the law gives six months for new parties to complete the petition, but because the deadline this year is July 17, the Socialist Party couldn’t take advantage of the liberalization for the entire six-month petitioning period. The opinion minimizes that point and says the party still has plenty of time.

Erard’s strongest point is that Michigan discriminates against newly-qualifying parties, and in favor of old parties, because old parties only needed 16,083 votes for any statewide candidate to remain on the ballot in the November 2012 election, whereas parties petitioning for 2014 need 32,261 signatures. The U.S. Supreme Court had said in Williams v Rhodes that one reason the Ohio ballot access laws in effect in 1968 were unconstitutional was that old parties needed a 10% vote to remain on, whereas new parties needed 15% to get on. The Michigan decision does not mention that case, Williams v Rhodes. Nor does the Michigan decision mention that in 1972, a 3-judge U.S. District Court in Massachusetts invalidated the Massachusetts law that required a vote of one-tenth of 1% for Governor for a party to remain on, but a 3% petition for a new party to get on.

Erard had shown that the Democratic and Republican Parties of Michigan never had to petition, because they have existed before 1939, and before 1939, no party in Michigan ever needed a petition to get on. New parties merely had to hold nominating conventions and apply. The decision says that Erard did not prove this, but he did cite the 1939 law, and the judge appears to have overlooked that part of Erard’s brief.

On page 13, the opinion erroneously says the vote test for a party to remain on is 1% of the last vote for Secretary of State, when actually it is 1% of the winning candidate’s vote for Secretary of State. Erard will ask for reconsideration, based partly on this error in the decision, and on the error in the decision that says Erard did not prove his contention that the two major parties never had to petition.

On May 13, Public Policy Polling released a poll for several Alaska elections. Question fourteen, for the gubernatorial general election, has these results: Republican incumbent Sean Parnell 37%, Democrat Byron Mallott 27%, independent Bill Walker 17%, Constitution Party candidate J. R. Myers 4%, undecided 15%. If Myers receives at least 3% of the vote in November, the Constitution Party will be a qualified party in Alaska for the first time in its history. It has never before had a candidate for Governor of Alaska.

Alaska currently has four ballot-qualified parties: Republican, Democratic, Alaskan Independence, and Libertarian. They can remain on the ballot if their registration remains at or above 3% of the November 2014 gubernatorial vote, or if they poll 3% for Governor.

On May 19, the Tenth Circuit expedited the lawsuit filed by Kansas and Arizona, over whether those states can force the federal government to alter the federal voter registration forms used in their states. The two states don’t like the federal voter registration postcard form because they say aliens may register to vote using the form. The form requires a signature under penalty of perjury, but the states want all applicants to attach proof of citizenship.

The three judges in the Tenth Circuit who expedited the case also stayed the U.S. District Court decision while the case is pending in the Tenth Circuit. The U.S. District Court Judge had refused to stay his opinion, and had ordered the form to be altered immediately. The three judges who have the case in the Tenth Circuit are Carlos Lucero (a Clinton appointee), Jerome Holmes (a Bush Jr. appointee), and Gregory Phillips (an Obama appointee).

Meanwhile, there are close to 20,000 unprocessed federal voter registration forms from Kansas alone. The Kansas primary is August 5. The case is Kobach v U.S. Election Assistance Commission, 14-3062. Thanks to Rick Hasen for this news.