Kentucky Republican Candidate Sues to Obtain List of Voters who have Requested an Absentee Ballot

Posted on by April 8, 2014
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On April 3, Deborah Sheldon, a Republican running for State Senate in the May 20 primary, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court to strike down a 2013 law that says the list of voters who have requested an absentee ballot is not public information until after the primary or election is over. Sheldon says her campaign wants the list of registered Republicans who have requested an absentee ballot, so her campaign can send those voters campaign literature.

The list was public, until the 2013 legislature made it unavailable until the election is over. The state says the purpose for the 2013 law is because if candidates know who the absentee voters are before the election, they are likely to bribe those voters to vote a certain way. The lawsuit is Sheldon v Grimes, eastern district, 2:14cv-60.

Carolina Journal Carries Lengthy Story on Libertarian U.S. Senate Debate

Posted on by April 8, 2014
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This year, the Libertarian Party of North Carolina has a contested primary for U.S. Senate between Sean Haugh, a long-time activist in the party, and Tim D’Annunzio, who recently joined the Libertarian Party and had run as a Republican for Congress in 2010 and 2012.

The two debated each other on April 5. Carolina Journal has this lengthy story about the debate. Carolina Journal is a monthly print publication, 22 years old, and an important web page for news about North Carolina government and politics. Thanks to IndependentPoliticalReport for the link.

Pew Center Releases Study Comparing Election Administration in Each State

Posted on by April 8, 2014
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On April 8, the Pew Center released a comprehensive, objective study of election administration in each state. Here is a link to the Report. The link says the study is dated February 2014, but actually it was just released.

See this news story about the study. The study did not include ballot access, but some of the states found to have the poorest performance happen to be states with severe ballot access laws, such as Alabama, California, and Oklahoma.

New Oregon Registration Tally

Posted on by April 8, 2014
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Oregon has released a registration tally as of March 1, 2014. Two particular parties are poised to move into elevated legal status if trends continue. The Independent Party will qualify for its own government-provided primary in 2016 if its registration hits 5%. The new tally shows that it has over 100,000 registrants for the first time. It has 100,036. Five percent of the total state registration at this time would be 107,272. It is too late for the party to qualify for a 2014 primary, but if its growth continues at the rate it has this year, it will attain 5% in time for a 2016 primary.

The Independent Party has been paying for its own primary, but that is very expensive. In November 2012, the Independent Party had 94,750 registrants.

The Working Families Party will be able to retain its status as a ballot-qualified party, regardless of whether it meets the vote test, if it can get its registration up to one-half of 1%. Currently it has 10,583 registrants, only 145 shy of the .5% mark. The party has been doing a voter registration drive.

Here is a link to the March 2014 figures. The parties that gained registrants since the February tally, besides the two mentioned above, are Libertarian, Progressive, and Americans Elect. Thanks to Michael for the link.