On July 2, challenges were filed to seven Constitution Party legislative candidate petitions, and two Libertarian legislative candidate petitions, in Illinois. The seven challenged Constitution Party candidates are Gary Dunlap, running for State Senate, 27th district; Michael W. Oberline, running for State Senate, 48th district; Scott Kossack, for State Representative, district 118; Richard Evans, State Representative, 43rd district; Robert MeKerrow, State Representative, district 108; Joe Norris, State Representative, district 95; and Frank Mazo, State Representative, district 96. The challenged Libertarian candidates are Doug Marks, running for State Senate, 33rd district; and Chad Grimm, State Representative, 92nd district.

Also, challenges were filed to two Constitution Party U.S. House candidates, Randy Stufflebeam (12th district) and Tim Pearcy (15th district). And one was filed to the Green Party nominee in the 12th district, Paula Bradshaw.

On July 1, Californians for Electoral Reform voted to oppose ACA 10, the measure to make it more difficult to put statewide constitutional initiatives on the ballot. Current law requires a petition signed by a number of voters equal to 8% of the last gubernatorial vote. ACA 10 would provide that a constitutional amendment also needs the signatures of 8% of the last gubernatorial vote in each of at least 27 of the 40 State Senate districts. The change would probably double the cost of getting a constitutional amendment on the ballot.

California does not have a glut of constitutional initiatives on the ballot. This year, there are only two. Californians for Electoral Reform will send Paula Lee to the Assembly Elections Committee hearing on July 3 to express opposition to ACA 10. The hearing is in Room 444 of the Capitol, at 1:30 p.m.

On June 29, Charles Merriman, attorney for the independent candidate who has been challenging the Vermont June petition deadline for independent candidates, asked the Vermont Supreme Court to expedite the case. Here is the letter, requesting that the case be expedited. It explains that two presidential candidates, Jill Stein and Rocky Anderson, could benefit if the June 14 deadline were declared unconstitutional. The letter could have mentioned Virgil Goode as well.

The plaintiff who filed this case, Gerald Trudell, was trying to get on the ballot as an independent for U.S. House in 2010. Because that election is in the past, the lawsuit had previously not been perceived as one that needs to be expedited.