On September 12, the Vermont Supreme Court heard oral argument in Trudell v Markowitz, 2011-311. The issue is the constitutionality of the June petition deadline for independent candidates. The 2009 session of the legislature moved that deadline, which had always before been in September (or, long ago, in October). The argument seemed to go well. One of the Justices expressed an opinion that the state’s interest, “voter education”, is not a convincing argument. The state says that voters need six months to educate themselves about the candidates on the ballot. This ignores the fact that the major party national conventions are in late August and early September, and sometimes the nominees chosen at those conventions, at least for vice-president, are not known until shortly before the conventions.

On September 11, the Michigan Libertarian Party filed a new lawsuit involving presidential ballot access. The new lawsuit is Gelineau v Ruth Johnson, and is filed in U.S. District Court in the western district of Michigan. The new lawsuit includes the Michigan Libertarian Party, and some of its presidential elector candidates, and also Gary E. Johnson of Austin, Texas. Here is the 14-page brief, plus the accompanying exhibits, including a declaration by Gary E. Johnson of Texas.

The new lawsuit challenges the refusal of Ruth Johnson to respect the wishes of the state party, that if she won’t print Gary Johnson of New Mexico on the ballot, that she instead print Gary E. Johnson of Texas on the ballot. She had refused to do that in a letter dated September 7.

In the meantime, the first lawsuit, to get Gary Johnson of New Mexico on the ballot, in pending in the Sixth Circuit.