The Southern Illinoisan, the daily newspaper for Carbondale, Illinois, has this story about the race in 2014 for the 12th U.S. House district. The Green Party is ballot-qualified in this district because its nominee in 2012, Paula Bradshaw, polled over 5% of the vote (she got 5.61%). The story says Bradshaw expects to run again in 2014. The district is currently represented by a Democrat.
As of August 1, 2013, the percentage of voters registered in Colorado is: independent and miscellaneous 34.63%, Republican 32.57%, Democratic 31.61%, Libertarian .73%, Green .259%, Constitution .20%.
By comparison, in November 2012, the percentages were: Republican 33.67%, independent and miscellaneous 32.75%, Democratic 32.28%, Libertarian .71%, Green .262%, Constitution .21%, Americans Elect .12%.
The only qualified party that increased its share of the registration is the Libertarian Party.
The new tally is the first time since the 1980’s that the category “independents and miscellaneous” has outnumbered both major parties. Back in November 1980, the percentages were: independent 37.57%, Democratic 31.78%, Republican 30.65%. Back then, voters were forced to register only as Democratic, Republican, or independent. Thanks to Michael for this news.
On July 30, a Superior Court Judge in Orange County, California, set a trial date of March 17, 2004 for Moreno v City of Anaheim, 30-2012-579998. This is the lawsuit that argues that Anaheim’s at-large city elections violate the California Voting Rights Act. Anaheim has a population of 336,265, and is the largest city in California that still elects all of its city council members at-large with neither ranked choice voting, cumulative voting, or limited voting.
The lawsuit was filed in June 2012. It has been delayed while the city had been given extra time to decide whether to abandon at-large elections. The city had considered districts, but had then merely changed the system to retain at-large elections, but to set up districts which would be used for candidate qualification. In other words, districts would exist and one candidate from each district would be elected, but the elections would still be at-large. The city argued that was enough to moot the lawsuit, but the court disagreed and set the trial date.
Phillipp Negron, the 25-year-old nephew of a Nassau County business executive with ties to the Republican Party organization in that county, has dropped out of the race for Nassau County Executive. He had filed to run in the Green Party primary, even though he has never had any contact with activists in the Green Party. Negron withdrew after his petition to be on the Green Party primary ballot was challenged. See this story.
On August 2, the U.S. Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Nader v Federal Election Commission, 12-5134. The opinion says Nader doesn’t have standing to complain that the FEC did not enforce the campaign finance laws in 2004. Specifically, Nader demonstrated that the people who challenged his ballot access in 2004 spent millions of dollars on that effort, and none of the people who spent that money ever reported it as a donation to the Democratic Party or the John Kerry presidential campaign. Although everyone agrees with Nader’s accusation, the FEC did nothing about the Nader complaint (although the FEC took several years to make the determination that it would do nothing) and now the D.C. Circuit says Nader lacks standing.
The D.C. Circuit implied that if Nader were running for president in the next election, then he would have standing. The opinion is only six pages long.
