State officials have filed amicus curiae briefs on both sides, in the U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming case over Indiana’s law requiring voters at the polls to show government photo-ID.

The brief in support of Indiana’s law was initiated and written by the Texas Attorney General, and is co-signed by the Attorneys General of Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Michigan, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Puerto Rico. Texas’ brief makes the claim that Texas itself experienced vote fraud in the “1946” election of U.S. Senator Lyndon B. Johnson. This is a historical error; Johnson was elected in 1948, not 1946. The particular vote fraud that enabled Johnson to win the 1948 primary was that the polling place officials in one particular precinct in south Texas colluded to create imaginery votes. This is well-documented in Means of Ascent, volume II of Robert Caro’s famous 3-part biography of Lyndon Johnson. The 1948 Texas Democratic primary is not an example of voters fraudulenty impersonating other voters during hours when the polling place was open.

On the other side, the former Secretary of State of Georgia initiated a brief supporting the Indiana Democratic Party. It is co-signed by the former Secretary of State of Maryland, and the current Secretaries of State of Ohio, Missouri, and Vermont.

Jim Mangia and Linda Curtis have set up an on-line presidential primary poll which includes the Democratic, Republican and Green presidential primaries. It is at this link.

Even though the Libertarian Party is now on the ballot in more states than the Green Party, the Green Party is entitled to more presidential primaries than the Libertarian Party, or any other third party. If Ralph Nader does declare for the Green Party presidential nomination, the Green Party presidential primaries, featuring a contest between Nader and Cynthia McKinney (plus others who aren’t as famous) will be exciting enough to merit mainstream media attention. Thus it is not unreasonable for the Mangia-Curtis poll to feature just three parties. Mangia and Curtis are associated with the Committee for a Unified Independent Party, also known as Independent Voting.

Massachusetts has four ballot-qualified parties: Democratic, Republican, Green-Rainbow, and Working Families. The Working Families Party isn’t holding a presidential primary.

The other three parties are holding a presidential primary. The Massachusetts Secretary of State has already released the list of Democratic and Republican primary candidates. The Green-Rainbow list won’t be released until December 10.

The Democratic candidates are: Biden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards, Gravel, Kucinich, Obama, Richardson.

The Republican candidates are: Giuliani, Huckabee, Hunter, McCain, Paul, Romney, Tancredo, Thompson.

The Republican state chair did not include Alan Keyes in his recommendations to the Secretary of State, even though Keyes is in the Republican presidential primaries in most states.