Kansas Appears to be First State to Show Anyone Registered as a Member of Americans Elect

Posted on by October 7, 2011
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According to this story, the Kansas Secretary of State’s office has released a new voter registration tally, as of October 1, 2011, and that tally shows that one person in Kansas is registered in Americans Elect. This appears to be the first official registration data in any state that shows any registered voters in Americans Elect. The number in Kansas will surely increase, when Kansas voter registration forms listing Americans Elect as a choice begin to circulate around the state.

The other Kansas totals are: Republican 750,908; Democratic 442,647; Libertarian 10,139; Reform 1,065; independent 487,944.

Other states in which Americans Elect will be listed on voter registration forms soon include Nevada and California. Arizona and Florida do not list the qualified minor parties on the voter registration form. In Alaska, Americans Elect is only a limited political party (i.e., a party that is only on the ballot for the presidential election), and so the Alaska registration form won’t list Americans Elect.

Michigan Legislator’s Recall Blocked by State Appeals Court

Posted on by October 7, 2011
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On October 6, a Michigan State Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that a recall election set for November 8 should not be held. The Court did not explain its reasoning. Ballots have already been printed. The recall was aimed at state Representative Paul H. Scott, author of a bill that passed this year making it easier to fire teachers. The teachers were the prime force behind the recall petition. The case is Scott v Director of Elections, 306155.

Scott argued that the statement on the recall petitions, explaining why he should be repealed, was untruthful. On September 12 a lower court had ruled that the recall should go ahead, and that it was not the function of a court to determine whether the statement on the petition was true or not. Scott also argued that until his lawsuit over the statement had been settled, elections officials should not have validated the petition. The petition had 11,000 signatures, and elections officials ruled that it had more than enough valid signatures.

No Michigan legislator has been recalled since 1983.

All Briefs Now Filed in Kansas Constitution Party Case

Posted on by October 7, 2011
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On October 6, the final brief was filed in the 10th circuit in Constitution Party of Kansas v Kobach, 11-3152. This last brief is the Constitution Party’s rebuttal. The issue is whether Kansas must permit voters to register into parties that are not ballot-qualified, but which are organized in Kansas and have placed candidates on the Kansas ballot.

Currently, Kansas is one of only two states that have registration by party, and have neither a blank line in the political party area of the form, nor a procedure for an unqualified party to ever be listed on the voter registration form. Kansas is in the 10th circuit, and in 1984 the 10th circuit that Colorado must have some means for a voters to register into an unqualified party.

So-Called “Sham Candidate” Withdraws from Arizona Special State Senate Election

Posted on by October 6, 2011
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On October 6, according to this story, Olivia Cortes withdrew from the November 8, 2011 special recall election for Arizona State Senate in Senator Russell Pearce’s district. However, her name will remain on ballots, but notices will be posted at polling places saying she is no longer a candidate. If anyone votes for her anyway, the vote won’t be counted. The lower state court hearing in the lawsuit over whether she should be removed from the ballot has been canceled.

Steve Rankin Dies, Was Expert on Constitutional Law Involving Closed and Open Primaries

Posted on by October 6, 2011
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On August 21, 2011, Steve Rankin of Jackson, Mississippi, died of cancer. He was an expert in major party primaries, especially on the details of which voters can participate in those primaries. He believed that parties should decide for themselves who should vote in their primaries. He kept in touch with all legal developments concerning this issue, and was a frequent source of news for this blog, and a frequent commenter for quite a few years.