It was earlier reported that Arkansas Green Party candidate Fred Smith would be the only name on the November ballot for State Representative, district 54. However, Hudson Hallum, the Democratic incumbent who resigned, and who is not considered a candidate for re-election, will still be listed on the ballot. See this article, which says it is possible a court will order that votes for Hallum not be counted and that voters be told of this at the polling place.
On September 13, the Connecticut Supreme Court asked attorneys for both sides in Republican Party of Connecticut v Merrill for supplemental briefs. The justices want to hear from both sides on whether the Republican Party should have asked for administrative relief, before filing the lawsuit. The issue in the lawsuit is whether the Republican Party or the Democratic Party should be listed first on the ballot. It seems that the court is mulling over the idea of dismissing the lawsuit on procedural grounds.
On September 13, the Kansas State Objections Board, consisting of the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of State, heard a challenge to President Obama’s name being listed on the November ballot. The Board postponed making any decision about the matter until next week. See this news story, which suggests that Kansas officials will be seeking information about President Obama’s birth certificate from Hawaii officials.
The Board also rejected an appeal by the Americans Elect Party of Kansas to list Roseanne Barr on the ballot as the Americans Elect nominee. The board did not explain the basis for its decision. Casey Peters presented the Americans Elect Party of Kansas case via telephone speaker phone, because at the time he was physically in his state of residence, California. No one argued against the Barr nomination except for an employee of the Kansas Secretary of State. It is not known if the Board’s decision will be explained in writing.
Late on September 13, the Oklahoma Supreme Court issued a brief order, refusing to order elections officials to put Gary Johnson on the ballot as the Americans Elect nominee. However, the Court accepted jurisdiction in the case. The case is Lawhorn v Ziriax, 111026. There may be more details from the Court later on September 14.
The state officers of Americans Elect had nominated Gary Johnson in July. The state made no decision on whether to accept the filing, until August 29, when it rejected the filing. On August 31, Americans Elect had filed a lawsuit directly in the Oklahoma Supreme Court, seeking to validate its filing. The only oral argument in the case was held in front of a referee, who then made a report to the Court. As far as is known, the referee’s report hasn’t yet been made available to the public.
Melinda Wadsley, an Iowa presidential elector candidate for the Republican Party, has resigned. The Republican Party will be allowed to replace her with someone else. See this story.
In Iowa, as in 44 other states, the names of presidential elector candidates do not appear on the November ballot. Five states still print the names of presidential elector candidates on the ballot. It is not clear how a resignation would be handled in those five states, which are Arizona, Idaho, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota, especially if the ballots had already been printed.
