Five West Virginia Delegates have introduced HB 2565, which makes it easier for a group to obtain and/or keep party status. Current law requires a party to poll 1% for Governor before it enjoys qualified status. The bill would keep that, but would add a second method, that the group have at least 1,000 registered members. Thanks to Jeff Becker and Bill Redpath for this news.

Another bill pending in West Virginia has the same goal, but changes the vote test from 1% for Governor to 1% for any statewide office. That bill is HB 2032. The author of HB 2032 is one of the co-sponsors of HB 2565, which suggests that HB 2032 will be set aside in favor of HB 2565.

The editor of the Norwich Bulletin has this column, deploring Connecticut’s discriminatory public funding law for candidates for state office. The column also laments that there are no bills pending to ease the discriminatory aspect of the public funding program. Nominees of parties that polled 20% for Governor in the last election get full public funding with no petition, but independent candidates, and the nominees of new parties, need a petition of 20% of the last vote cast in order to get public funding (they must also raise the same number of small contributions that major party members also must raise).

On Thursday, February 21, a Maryland legislative committee hears testimony on sixteen bills related to elections. See this story. None of the bill concern ballot access for candidates or parties, although one of the bills would make it more difficult to put a referendum on the ballot.