On February 4, the North Dakota Senate passed SB 2213, which repeals a law passed in 1911 that makes it illegal for anyone to try to persuade any voter to vote for or against any candidate on election day. Last October, a U.S. District Court enjoined the law. The case has been on hold, to give the legislature an opportunity to repeal the law.

SB 2213 repeals the restriction, but it also says that it is still illegal to try to influence a voter on election day within 100 feet of the entrance to a polling place. The old law made a general exception for campaign bumper stickers on vehicles. The bill says that it remains legal for an automobile with a campaign bumper sticker to be within 100 feet of the entrance of a polling place, but that the driver must drive the car away as soon as he or she has voted.

On February 26, the Montana House passed HB 229, which relaxes contribution limits. Current law says individuals may not give more than $130 to a legislative candidate, or more than $250 to a candidate for state statewide office other than Governor, or more than $500 to a gubernatorial candidate. The bill raises these limits to $500, $1,000, and $2,500 (the existing law allows the limits to rise with inflation, so the actual current limits are slightly higher than the dollar amounts in the statute).

The bill also eliminates the cap on political party contributions to the party’s own nominees, although that part of the bill only applies to parties that were on the ballot in the last gubernatorial election, so that part of the bill discriminates against newly-qualifying parties.

If the bill is signed into law, that would moot the lawsuit now pending in the 9th circuit over whether the limits are too low. That case is Lair v Bullock, 12-35809. The U.S. District Court had declared the limits unconstitutionally low, but the 9th circuit had stayed the decision a few days later. The 9th circuit has suspended the lawsuit until June 2013, at the request of both sides; presumably this is so everyone can see what the legislature and the Governor do.

On March 6, Oklahoma Republican Party state chair Matt Pinnell said he won’t seek another term as state chair. The Republican Party will choose a new chair at its state convention on April 20. Pinnell has aggressively sought to prevent Republican state legislators from easing Oklahoma ballot access ever since he became state chair in 2010.