Fragmentary California Polling Suggests Orly Taitz Might Place Second in U.S. Senate Race on June 5

Posted on by April 16, 2012
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On June 5, California will hold its primary. In the U.S. Senate race, Democratic incumbent Dianne Feinstein is running for re-election. Because California is using a top-two primary on June 5, all candidates from all parties run on a single primary ballot. That ballot contains six Democrats, 14 Republicans, no independents, one Libertarian, one American Independent, and two Peace & Freedom Party members, for a total of 24 names.

There have been no authoritative polls in this race, but to the extent any polls have been taken, they suggest that Feinstein and Orly Taitz will place first and second. Orly Taitz is on the ballot as a Republican, and no other Republican running in the race holds elected office or enjoys high name recognition. Taitz is an Orange County attorney who has been working for four years to find and publicize evidence that President Obama does not meet the constitutional qualifications. Her ballot label is “Doctor/attorney/businesswoman.”

The other Republicans on the ballot, and their occupational ballot labels, are: John Boruff businessman; Oscar Alejandro Braun businessman/rancher; Greg Conlon businessman/CPA; Elizabeth Emken businesswoman/nonprofit executive; Rogelio Gloria graduate student/businessman; Dan Hughes small business owner; Dennis Jackson aerospace general manager; Dirk Allen Konopik MBA student; Donald Krampe retired administration director; Robert Lauten no occupation listed; Al Ramirez businessman; Nachum Shifren educator/author/businessman; Rick Williams business attorney.

California is the only state that prints the occupation of each candidate on ballots.

U.S. Supreme Court Won’t Hear North Dakota Libertarian Party Ballot Access Appeal

Posted on by April 16, 2012
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On April 16, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Libertarian Party of North Dakota v Jaeger, 11-1050. This is a ballot access case, which challenged the North Dakota law on how a minor party candidate for the state legislature gets on the ballot. No party can list a nominee on the November ballot for legislature unless between 10% and 15% of all the voters in the primary choose a minor party primary ballot. Because the overwhelming majority of primary voters are not interested in choosing a minor party’s primary ballot, and instead choose one of the major party primary ballots, the effect is that minor parties can never place nominees on the ballot for state legislature.

North Dakota has not had any minor party nominees on the November ballot for state legislature since 1976. The Libertarian Party’s cert petition had also pointed out that the 8th circuit, which upheld the law, make an important factual error in its decision. The 8th circuit said that the restriction is necessary to keep frivolous candidates off the ballot, because the primary vote test is the only ballot access barrier. The 8th circuit wrote that once a party qualifies (with a petition of 7,000 names) it is then forever afterwards on the ballot automatically. The truth is that minor parties go off the ballot if they don’t poll at least 5% for President, Governor, or Secretary of State. When this factual error had been pointed out to the 8th circuit, the panel refused to rehear the case and refused even to issue an amended opinion.

The Judge who wrote the 8th circuit opinion is Kermit Bye, a Clinton appointee. The two other judges who signed that opinion are Roger Wollman, a Reagan appointee, and Bobby Shepherd, a Bush Jr. appointee.

New Mexico U.S. Senate Race Will Probably Include a Third Choice in November, for the First Time in 16 Years

Posted on by April 15, 2012
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Jon Barrie is likely to qualify for the November 2012 ballot for U.S. Senate candidate in New Mexico. If he does so, he will be the first non-Democrat, non-Republican candidate for U.S. Senate to appear on a New Mexico ballot since 1996, when a Green and a Libertarian each qualified.

Independent candidates in New Mexico face a severe petition burden, 3% of the last gubernatorial vote. Therefore, Barrie created the Independent American Party of New Mexico, and submitted 5,900 signatures by the April 2012 deadline. That was almost twice as many signatures as were needed. But New Mexico forces qualified minor parties to submit separate petitions for each of their nominees. So he must also submit a petition of 6,018 valid signatures, by late June, to qualify for the ballot. The two petitions combined, requiring a total of 9,027 signatures, still total fewer signatures than the statewide independent petition, which requires 18,053 valid signatures.

Barrie’s campaign web page is jonbarrieforsenate.com. Barrie is not opposed to having his party nominate like-minded candidates for other partisan office this year.