Indiana ballot access laws, since 1983, have been so restrictive, the Libertarian Party is generally the only party that appears on the ballot for statewide office and Congress. No other party, other than the two major parties, has appeared on the Indiana ballot for a statewide office since 2000, when Pat Buchanan petitioned as the Reform Party nominee.

But the petition requirements for legislature aren’t too restrictive, so in 2012 both the Constitution Party and the Socialist Party placed one or two legislative candidates on the November ballot. The Constitution Party’s nominee, Audrey Queckboerner, polled 8.06% in a race in the 85th district in northeast Indiana. The race also included a Republican and a Democrat.

The Socialist Party ran two legislative nominees, both in the Indianapolis area. In the 39th House district, the state chair of the Socialist Party, John Strinka, polled 9.77% in a two-person race. The Socialist Party, before 2012, had last had legislative candidates on the ballot in Indiana in 1946, and none of the 1946 candidates polled more than .4%. Also in 2012, Socialist Party nominee Ronald Haldeman polled 3.35% in a two-person race against a Democrat. He probably would have done better, but he was running in a black majority district with a black incumbent, and Haldeman is white.

On June 1, 2010, the South Carolina Republican Party and one of its county units filed a federal lawsuit, hoping to win a ruling that the party may close its own primaries. That case is Greenville County Republican Party v State, 6:10-cv-1407. The case has not had a decision yet but will have a trial in mid-2013. Recently the Republican Party identified two expert witnesses who will testify. The state has not yet said who its expert witnesses will be.

South Carolina has never had registration by party, and has always provided that any registered voter may choose any party’s primary ballot. In the past the Democratic Party of South Carolina had a rule limiting its primary to whites only, but that was held unconstitutional in 1947.

The write-in vote for President in Vermont in November 2012 was: Ron Paul 717, Jill Stein 594, Virgil Goode 13, Roseanne Barr 9. These figures were determined on January 11 by a team of voting rights activists who volunteered to help the Vermont Secretary of State do this tally. Thanks to Jeremy Hansen for this news.

Presidential candidates who were on the ballot, and thus didn’t need to depend on write-ins, were President Obama, Mitt Romney, Gary Johnson, Rocky Anderson, and Peta Lindsay.