On September 9, the plaintiffs in Balsam v Guadagno filed a notice of appeal to the Third Circuit. This is the case in which some New Jersey voters argue that the U.S. Constitution does not permit governments to pay for the expenses of partisan primaries. In the Third Circuit the case is 14-3882. The U.S. District Court had upheld the New Jersey law that pays for partisan primaries.
On September 16, the Kansas Supreme Court will hear the case over whether the Democratic Party may withdraw its nominee for U.S. Senate, Chad Taylor. The oral argument starts at 9 a.m. Kansas (central) time. Anyone may hear the oral argument online at kscourts.org/kansas-courts/supreme-court/arguments.asp.
This is an important case for those who believe in the rights of political parties to make their own decisions about nominees. The Kansas Democratic Party doesn’t wish to have its own nominee for U.S. Senate because it is supporting independent candidate Greg Orman.
On September 4, U.S. District Court Judge David Carter refused to require California to show write-in space on ballots for the November 2014 election. Milonopoulos v Bowen, central district, 2:14cv-5973.
The denial of injunctive relief is mostly based on the 1992 U.S. Supreme Court decision Burdick v Takushi, which upheld Hawaii’s ban on write-in space on ballots. The order denying injunctive relief does not take into account that Hawaii ballot access to the general election was far, far easier than California’s current access to the general election, for Congressional elections. In Hawaii, a minor party candidate for Congress could appear on the general election ballot if his party was a qualified party and the candidate won his party’s primary, which could be accomplished with a single vote if no one was running against that candidate in that party’s primary.
By contrast, in California, no one can get on the November ballot unless he or she places first or second in the June primary. Even a candidate supported by 30% of the voters may (depending on how the other candidates poll in the primary) fail to qualify for the November ballot.
Reply
Joe Mathews of California has this Fox & Hounds commentary on the Oregon initiative for a top-two primary, and the effect of the Oregon Citizens Review process.
On September 15, the Ohio Libertarian Party asked a U.S. District Court to place its gubernatorial ticket on the November ballot. This time, the request is based on new evidence showing that the process by which the ticket was removed from the party’s primary ballot was corrupt.
Meanwhile, a Columbus Dispatch poll published September 14 shows these results for the gubernatorial race: Republican incumbent John Kasich 59%; Democrat Ed Fitzgerald 29%; Green Anita Rios 3%; undecided 10%. If the Green Party nominee does receive 2%, the Green Party’s party status will be extended for four more years.
The Democratic nominee is performing very poorly because of recent revelations about his personal life.