New Mexico Representative Edward Sandoval (D-Albuquerque) has introduced HB 328, which moves the petition deadline for a newly-qualifying party from April to late July. The bill exists because last year, the April petition was struck down. HB 328 expresses the recommendations of the Secretary of State.

The bill also provides that if the petition appears on its face to have enough valid signatures, there would be no need to check every signature.

A somewhat similar bill, SB 125, also moves the deadline for a petition for a newly-qualifying party from April to late June. However, that bill also lowers the number of signatures needed on nominee petitions, in midterm years. New Mexico is the only state that requires two types of petitions, one to qualify the party itself, and then another petition for each of its nominees (except that presidential nominees don’t need a nominee petition). The nominee petitions are currently 1% of the last vote cast, but SB 125 eases that somewhat for midterm years, but switching to 1% of the last gubernatorial vote. Presidential year turnout is always at least 30% higher in presidential years than in midterm years, so that change in SB 125 would be quite beneficial.

However, the most logical solution would be for either bill to eliminate nominee petitions. Maryland once had such a dual system of petitions, but in 2003 the highest state court in Maryland invalidated the need for nominee petitions, saying they are redundant and not needed for any legitimate purpose.

Bills have been introduced in both houses of the Tennessee legislature to return Tennessee to its pre-1961 ballot access rules for new and minor parties. As was the case before 1961, parties could be recognized if they filed paperwork identifying their officers and bylaws, but no petition would be needed. Their individual nominees would each need 25 signatures.

Under current Tennessee law, independent candidates only need 25 signatures, and candidates can get on primary ballot with 25 signatures. But minor party candidates can’t run, with their party label, unless their party submits over 40,000 valid signatures.

The bill, if enacted, would be similar to the Mississippi law on new and minor parties. Mississippi has never required a petition for a party to be on the ballot; it must merely be organized. The bills are SB 2575 by Senator Jim Kyle (D-Memphis) and Representative Craig Fitzhugh (D-Ripley). Thanks to Daniel Lewis for the news.

On February 5, U.S. District Court Judge Eric Melgren signed an order restricting the scope of the Kansas-Arizona challenge to the Election Assistance Commission’s decision not to allow those two states to amend the federal voter registration postcard form. The two states wanted a trial to submit evidence that the federal form doesn’t offer enough protection against aliens registering to vote. The federal form requires applicants to sign under penalty of perjury that they are citizens, but the two states want to change the form to require the applicant to attach proof.

The Election Assistance Commission had already held a hearing last year at which both sides presented evidence. The EAC record on this matter consists of 1,912 pages. After the EAC’s hearing, the EAC issued a 46-page determination that there is no need to amend the form. The judge ruled that, therefore, there is no need for a trial on this issue in his court. Instead, the District Court will simply rule on whether the EAC has the authority to make the decision it did. Kansas and Arizona will now probably argue that the EAC’s determination was “arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion”, and the two states will also probably argue that the EAC is required to honor the request of the states. The two states may also argue that the EAC had no authority to act because, although it has a full-time professional staff, it has no sitting commissioners.

The case is Kobach v U.S. Election Assistance Commission, 5:13cv-4095, in U.S. District Court in Kansas.