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Maine Write-in Improvement Bill Gets Publicity

Posted on March 18, 2009 by adminMarch 18, 2009

The Kennebec Journal (daily newspaper for Maine’s capital city, Augusta) has this article about LD 547, the bill to improve write-in voting. It is very unusual for the problems of write-in candidates to receive any publicity at all. LD 547, the brainchild of independent U.S. Senate candidate Herb Hoffman, has a legislative hearing on March 20. Hoffman became interested in the problems of getting write-in votes counted, after he was removed from the ballot last year and had to carry on his campaign for U.S. Senate as a write-in candidate.

First Circuit Upholds Ban on Petitioning for Candidates on Interior Post Office Sidewalks

Posted on March 18, 2009 by adminMarch 18, 2009

On February 25, the First Circuit upheld a Post Office regulation that, in effect, bans petititioning to place a candidate on a ballot on interior Post Office sidewalks. Del Gallo v Parent, 08-1511. The decision is 37 pages long, and was written by Judge Sandra Lynch, a Clinton appointee, and co-signed by Judge Michael Boudin, a Clinton appointee, and Kermit Lipiz, a Bush Sr. appointee.

Technically, the decision does not deal with the Post Office ban on collecting signatures on its interior sidewalks. Instead, it upholds another regulation that bans “campaigning” on postal interior sidewalks. But the decision assumes that petitioning for a candidate is equivalent to campaigning. The decision says that the Post Office needs the regulation because otherwise the public will assume the Post Office supports the candidate who is “campaigning” on its interior sidewalks.

Another case, related directly to the postal ban on all petitioning on its interior sidewalks, called Initiative & Referendum Institute v Postal Service, is still pending in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia.

Maryland Has an Independent Legislator

Posted on March 17, 2009 by adminMarch 17, 2009

Maryland Delegate Richard Weldon, who represents western Maryland, was re-elected in November 2006 as a Republican. However, in September 2008, he changed his registration to “independent.” He is the first Maryland legislator to be anything other than a Republican or a Democrat since 1934. Here is the article about Weldon on Wikipedia. Unfortunately, it doesn’t say why he switched to being an independent.

All Maryland legislator have 4 year terms and all are elected in midterm years. Weldon says he won’t run for re-election in 2010.

Sundwall Invited Into Televised Debate

Posted on March 17, 2009 by adminMarch 17, 2009

TV station WMHT and the Albany Times Union newspaper are jointly sponsoring a candidate debate, in the New York U.S. House 20th district special election set for March 31. The debate will be 7:30 pm, Thursday, March 19. All three ballot-listed candidates are invited. They are Libertarian Eric Sundwall, Republican Jim Tedisco, and Democrat Scott Murphy.

British Columbia Voters to Vote on Single Transferable Vote

Posted on March 17, 2009 by adminMarch 17, 2009

British Columbia is holding a referendum on May 12. Voters will be asked whether they would rather use the current winner-take-all system, or single transferable vote. See the web page of the British Columbia Elections Office here. Thanks to Thomas Jones for this link.