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Congressional Bill to Expand Size of U.S. House is in Trouble

Posted on March 6, 2009 by adminMarch 6, 2009

The bills in Congress to expand the size of the U.S. House of Representatives from 435 members to 437, which had seemed likely to pass, no longer seem likely to pass. The Senate had passed S160 last week with an amendment voiding the District of Columbia ban on semi-automatic weapons. All Democrats in the Senate had voted for the bill, even though some want to keep the semi-automatic gun ban. These Senators felt that the House would remove the gun amendment. However, it now appears that the House bill, HR 157, will also keep the gun amendment. As a consequence, some Democratic members of Congress who are more interested in retaining the semi-automatic gun bill than in providing a voting representative for D.C. will not support the final bill. See this story from Congressional Quarterly.

9th Circuit Erases a Bad Ballot Access Lower Court Ruling from Oregon

Posted on March 5, 2009 by adminMarch 5, 2009

In 2005, the Oregon legislature passed a law making it illegal for a voter to both vote in the primary, and sign for an independent candidate. An Oregon voter, Greg Wasson, then filed a federal lawsuit against the new restriction. In 2006 the U.S. District Court ruled that Wasson didn’t have standing to file the case, but that in any event, what the Oregon legislature had done is constitutional.

Wasson appealed. On March 5, 2009, the 9th circuit ruled that Wasson indeed does not have standing. Then, it went on to say that since Wasson lacked standing, the U.S. District Court should not have expressed any opinion on whether the Oregon restriction is constitutional or not. The 9th circuit erased the District Court opinion. This means that if, in the future, an independent candidate files a lawsuit against the Oregon restriction, the matter will be considered as though the Wasson lawsuit had never been filed.

The Coalition for Free & Open Elections (COFOE) had filed an amicus curiae brief in the 9th circuit, pointing out that the U.S. District Court should not have expressed itself on the merits after having found that Wasson lacked standing. COFOE thanks volunteer Dan Meek for his excellent work, and also for this news. The 9th circuit opinion is only 3 pages long.

Transcript of Oral Argument in U.S. Supreme Court on Judicial Campaign Contributions and Justice

Posted on March 5, 2009 by adminMarch 5, 2009

On March 3, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Capterton v Massey, the interesting case over whether the U.S. Constitution protects people who are in court, and their opponents have contributed very large amounts of money to the campaigns of the judges who are hearing the case. Here is the transcript. The decision, when it is rendered, may affect Ralph Nader’s case, and the Pennsylvania Green Party’s case, against the large fees that they must pay to the people who challenged their petitions.

Texas Bill to Provide that All Parties Nominate by Primary

Posted on March 5, 2009 by adminMarch 5, 2009

Texas Representative Leo Berman (R-Tyler) has introduced HB 1892, to provide that all qualified parties nominate by primary, rather than convention. The bill is surprisingly short and devoid of details. It appears that any party that had filed an intent to qualify, at the beginning of the election year, would then be free to organize its own primary and hire its own polling place officials and rent its own polling locations. The state would then reimburse the party for these costs. The primary would be in March. Apparently after the primary, the normal petition requirement would then be required. The number of signatures would presumably be equal to 1% of the last gubernatorial vote, minus the number of voters who had chosen to vote in that new party’s primary. It is difficult to imagine that the state would be willing to pay for the administrative expenses of any party, even those that had not yet qualified for the ballot. Thanks to Jim Riley for the news about HB 1892.

Vermont Senate Passes National Popular Vote Bill

Posted on March 5, 2009 by adminMarch 5, 2009

On February 27, the Vermont Senate passed S34 by a vote of 15-10. This is the National Popular Vote Plan bill. The bill has now passed in three legislative chambers this year, one chamber each in Vermont, Arkansas, and New Mexico. However it has not passed entirely through both houses of the legislature in any state so far this year.