North Carolina Representative Mark Brody (R-Matthews) has introduced HB 752, to let independent candidates be called “independent” on the ballot, instead of “unaffiliated.” The bill also says if an independent candidate gets on the ballot, if he or she then runs for the same office again in the following election, no petition would be needed if the candidate’s vote total the first time had been at least twice as many votes as the number of signatures needed.
The Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in the upcoming special election for U.S. Senate will be Gabriel Gomez, who defeated Dan Winslow and Michael Sullivan, according to this news story. The Democratic nominee will be Edward J. Markey. They will be the only two candidates on the June 25 ballot.
Winslow is a Massachusetts state legislator who had also been chief counsel to Americans Elect, 2010-2012.
On April 30, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo released the text of a proposed election law bill he hopes the legislature will pass. The proposal is identified as “Legislative Bill Drafting Commission 12024-02-3”, or as “Governor’s Program Bill #4.” The bill, if enacted, would allow anyone to run in any party’s primary, regardless of whether the candidate is a member of that party or not, and regardless of what party officers think about the candidate.
Current law says candidates can’t run in the primary of parties they are not a member of, unless that party’s leaders give permission. Thanks to Mark Dunlea for this news.
Great Britain holds local elections on May 2. The Green Party has more than 900 candidates on ballots for local office around the country, according to this story. This is what a small or new party can accomplish when the ballot access laws are lenient and non-discriminatory.
Recall petition efforts are underway against four Colorado legislators. One of them, State Senator Evie Hudak, happened to come across a recall petitioner in her district outside a store. According to this story, Senator Hudak attempted to have the petitioner removed from that location. However, twenty-two years ago, Colorado state courts ruled that First Amendment activity must be permitted on shopping center property. Thanks to Doug McNeil for the link.
