The National Popular Vote Bill in Oklahoma, SB 841, will not pass this year. Even though it passed the Rules Committee, it never got a vote on the Senate floor. All Senate bills that have not passed the Senate yet are dead.
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The Massachusetts Joint Election Laws Committee will hear HB 1830 and SB 13 on March 23, Wednesday, at 1:30 p.m. These are identical bills to increase the number of signatures for a statewide initiative from 3% of the last gubernatorial vote, to 7% of the last gubernatorial vote. Currently, the Massachusetts statewide initiative process to change ordinary laws requires fewer signatures (as a percentage of the state’s population) than any other state.
The Massachusetts initiative process was used successfully in 1990 to qualify an initiative that cut the number of signatures for statewide minor party and independent candidates from approximately 50,000 signatures, to 10,000 signatures. Probably that measure could never have qualified for the ballot if Massachusetts had had a 7% requirement for initiatives. Thanks to Carla Howell for this news.
On March 16, two former officials of the Democratic Party of Oakland County, Michigan, were charged with forgery and related crimes, in connection with last year’s attempt to place a Tea Party on the ballot by petition in that state. See this article. Thanks to Tom Jones for the link. The forgery and associated crimes related not only to the petition, but to various declaration of candidacy forms filed by the party’s supposed nominees.
Here is the rebuttal brief in McComish v Bennett. Here is the rebuttal brief in Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s PAC v Bennett. The U.S. Supreme Court will hold oral arguments in these two cases on Monday, March 28. These are the lawsuits over whether extra public funding for some candidates who have well-financed privately-funded opponents violates the U.S. Constitution.
There are two cases because two different organizations challenged the extra public funding part of the Arizona program. The United States government has intervened in the case in support of the Arizona law, and at the oral argument, the solicitor general of the United States will present arguments, along with attorneys for the state of Arizona. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the second link.
The British Electoral Commission has published an explanation of the upcoming May 5, 2011 vote on Instant-Runoff Voting for members of the House of Commons. Here is the booklet intended for voters in England. Thanks to Thomas Jones for the link.