On January 3, the New Jersey Senate passed A4225 by a vote of 22-13. It is the National Popular Vote Plan. The bill now goes to the Governor, who is expected to sign it.
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Michael Bloomberg has not said that he is running for president. However, the Virginia Independent Green Party (which is not affiliated with any national party) is already circulating a petition with Bloomberg listed as its presidential candidate. Virginia permits stand-ins. The vice-presidential candidate listed on the petition is Gail Parker, but if Bloomberg were to run and make use of that petition, Parker would be free to withdraw, and Bloomberg could substitute his actual running mate, later in the year.
The petition already has 300 signatures. 10,000 are required, due in August 2008.
The Texas deadline for candidates to file in the primary (for all office) was January 2. No Democrat filed to run in for U.S. House, 14th district, so Ron Paul (assuming he wins the Republican U.S. House primary) will have no trouble being re-elected. Paul does have one Republican opponent in the March primary.
On January 3, the Washington State Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the Seattle Housing Authority cannot bar residents of public housing from placing political signs and posters on their exterior doors. Some of the doors face the street, and some face interior halls. The majority depended on the First Amendment and said, “Displaying a sign from one’s own residence often carries a message quite distinct from placing the same sign somewhere else.” The dissent said, “While there is undoubtably concern about tenants being able to express their views, there are neighbors with rights as well.”
The case is Resident Action Council v Seattle Housing Authority, 80006-5. Thanks to How Appealing for this news.
The Working Families Party is a ballot-qualified party in Massachusetts, but Massachusetts doesn’t allow fusion (except that if a candidate wins the primary of the party that he or she is not a member of via write-in votes, which is very difficult, fusion is allowed). The Working Families Party generally desires to cross-endorse the Democratic Party nominee (or, in rare cases, the Republican nominee) rather than running its own nominee.
Massachusetts holds a special election on March 4 to fill the vacancy in the State House, Middlesex 23 district (mostly the town of Arlington). Suzanne Gordon, who has authored or edited 12 books and who is an expert on health care, has submitted petitions to be on the Democratic primary ballot, and the Working Families Party. She needed 150 signatures in each primary. If she gets enough valid signatures on both petitions, she could be the plaintiff-candidate for a proposed lawsuit to gain more complete fusion in Massachusetts. Although the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1997 that nothing in the U.S. Constitution forbids states from outlawing fusion, it is possible that the Massachusetts Constitution’s guarantees of free association will protect the right of two political parties to jointly nominate a candidate.