In May 2012, the Associated Students at Cal State University sponsored a congressional debate on campus, for candidates running in the 30th district. However, the Association only invited four of the seven ballot-listed candidates to participate. It invited the two incumbent Congressmen, Howard Berman and Brad Sherman. It also invited two Republicans candidates, Mark Reed and Susan Shelley. But it did not invite the only minor party candidate, Professor Michael Powelson, a member of the Green Party. Nor did it invite Democrat Vince Gilmore nor Republican Navraj Singh.

At the time the Association said it was only inviting the four candidates whom, it thought, had a realistic chance to place first or second and thus qualify to be on the November ballot. Now Graduate Student Ankur Patel, a Green, has sued the Association in small claims court. The hearing is January 30, Wednesday, at 1 p.m., in the Chatsworth Courthouse, 9425 Penfield Avenue, Los Angeles. Patel, as a student, is forced to be a member of the Association and to pay $82 dues each semester. Technically the lawsuit asks that the Association refund his dues; such a claim is necessary in order to have the ability to use small claims court. The real goal is to pressure the Association into never again hosting a debate without inviting all ballot-listed candidates. UPDATE: here is a newspaper story about the case.

Washington, D.C., is holding a special election for council-at-large on April 23. Because this is a special election, parties don’t have nominees. All individuals who wish to appear on the ballot must submit a petition with at least 3,000 names. Although 20 candidates took out petition forms, only eight submitted the petition by the due date on January 23. See this story. Assuming all eight remain on the ballot, voters will choose one of them, with no run-off.

Six are Democrats, one is a Republican, one is a Green. The Green is Perry Redd. The Republican is Patrick Mara. The Democrats are Anita Bonds, Michael A. Brown, Matthew Frumin, John Settles, Elissa Silverman, and Paul Zukerberg.

New Mexico Senator Michael Sanchez (D-Belen), the Senate Majority Leader, has introduced SB 276, which restores the straight-ticket device. The bill says that only parties that have at least two statewide nominees would be entitled to the device. No party, other than the Democratic and Republican Parties, has had at least two statewide nominees on the ballot since 2002, when the Green Party was on for Governor-Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General.