On August 27, the two Kentucky Republicans who had filed a lawsuit in state court to remove the only two minor party congressional candidates this year dropped their lawsuit. Thanks to Jeff Trigg and Christina Tobin for this news. The lawsuit had alleged that neither the Libertarian, nor the Constitution, Party nominees for U.S. House, 3rd district, had enough valid signatures.
Taylor Haynes, who would have been the first independent candidate on the ballot for Wyoming Governor since 1958 if he had qualified this year, did not qualify. He was unable to obtain the needed 4,988 valid signatures. This is the second petition failure in Wyoming this year. The Constitution Party also made a strong effort, but failed. See this story.
Wyoming’s requirement, 2% of the last vote cast, is significantly more severe in midterm years than in presidential years, because voter turnout is higher in presidential years. No statewide minor party or independent candidate petition has succeeded in Wyoming since 1994, the last time the Libertarian Party petitioned in Wyoming. Libertarians have not needed to petition since 1994, because the party always meets the 2% vote test. Mike Wheeler, the Libertarian nominee, is on the ballot for Governor this year.
Wyoming is one of the few states in the nation in which neither the Green Party nor the Constitution Party has ever appeared on the ballot. Wyoming only required 100 signatures for statewide minor party candidates, and for independent candidates, between 1890 and 1961, but in 1961 the legislature boosted the requirement to 5% of the last vote cast, although it has since been lowered to 2%.
Three independent candidates will appear on the California ballot on November 2 for U.S. House. While three is not a very big number, this is the largest number of independent candidates for the U.S. House ever to appear on the California ballot since the state began using government-printed ballots in 1892.
California has never had easy ballot access rules for independent candidates. The original law, passed in 1891, required a petition of 5% of the last vote cast, although that was lowered to 3% of the last vote cast in 1893. Nowadays the requirement for district office is 3% of the number of registered voters.
The three independent candidates in 2010 are Nicholas Dibs of Long Beach, Cecilia Iglesias of Santa Ana, and John Hager of Santa Barbara.
Topher Matthews has this column in “Greater Greater Washington”, an on-line news source for the Washington, D.C., area, advocating that city elections in Washington, D.C. (or at least mayoralty elections) use Instant-Runoff Voting, and that the primary be abolished. Washington, D.C., has partisan city elections. The city is overwhelmingly dominated by the Democratic Party. Yet, as the column points out, the general election in November always has a substantially higher turnout than the summer primary. See the column here.
On August 25, the group that submitted a petition to be on the Michigan ballot as a political party called the Tea Party, filed a lawsuit to obtain a place on the ballot. The case is The Tea Party v Board of State Canvassers, state court of appeals, Lansing, 299805.
The group has enough valid signatures on its petition, but the Board of State Canvassers refused to put it on the ballot because of various paperwork irregularities. The petition form is a state form that asks the group circulating the petition to enter the name of the party. The group filled out the form with the words “Tea Party”. However, on the certificate naming the party’s officers, and the campaign finance reports, the party is “The Tea Party.” Also, in Michigan, the party’s vignette (the picture that goes on the ballot representing the party; this is called a “logo” in other states) says the name of the party is “The Tea Party”.
