Both sides in Republican Party of Connecticut v Merrill have agreed that a higher state court should hear the case. Therefore, the Superior Court (the trial court) will not be involved in the case any longer. The issue is which party should be listed first on the general election ballot, the Republican Party or the Democratic Party.

The law says the parties should be on the ballot in order of their gubernatorial vote totals in the last gubernatorial election. The Secretary of State put the Democratic Party first, even though the Republican Party got more votes on its line for Governor in 2010. The Secretary of State added the Working Families Party gubernatorial vote onto the Democratic Party vote to justify her decision. She is a Democrat.

On August 12, Liberty Union, a ballot-qualified party that exists only in Vermont, nominated Stewart Alexander for President. He is also the Socialist Party presidential nominee as well.

However, it turns out that the 2009 law that changed independent candidate petition deadlines from September to June also changed the deadlines for qualified minor parties to submit their nominees for the November ballot. Therefore, the Secretary of State will refuse to print the Liberty Union nominees on the November ballot, unless the party wins a lawsuit.

As is well known, the Democratic and Republican Parties are not required to notify any state of their nominees until 60 days before the general election, so the 2009 Vermont law clearly violates the U.S. Supreme Court precedent Anderson v Celebrezze, which outlaws discrimination in timing in presidential elections.

On August 14, a U.S. District Court in Texas refused to stay its own order in Voting for America, Inc., v Andrade, southern district, G-12-44. This is the case involving several Texas restrictions on voter registration drives. Among the other restrictions enjoined on August 2, one prevented out-of-state residents from helping to register voters. Texas plans to appeal the order and had hoped that the order would be suspended while the appeals process takes place.