On December 11, a Democratic Party activist filed a federal lawsuit to stop the Michigan Democratic presidential primary. Martha Hayes v Michigan Democratic Party and the Michigan Secretary of State, no. 1:07-cv-1237. The case is in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

Hayes says she wants to vote for one of the Democratic presidential candidates who is not on the Michigan Democratic primary ballot. Her lawsuit doesn’t say whom she wishes to vote for, but the missing major Democratic candidates are John Edwards, Barack Obama, Bill Richardson, and Joe Biden. The lawsuit charges that because the national Democratic Party won’t recognize the January 15 primary, she and other Michigan Democrats are being disenfranchised. Separate from that, supporters of the 4 particular missing candidates are also being disenfranchised. The lawsuit acknowledges the right of the Democratic National Committee to refuse to seat any delegates from Michigan, and blames the state Democratic Party and the state for the problem.

If the lawsuit were successful, the Democratic primary would be cancelled and the party would choose delegates by caucuses, at a time when the national rules would permit (i.e., February 5 or later).

The Socialist Workers Party has run a presidential candidate, and placed him or her on the ballot in some states, in all elections starting in 1948. It expects to release the name of its 2008 presidential candidate in January 2008.

The Socialist Equality Party may nominate a presidential candidate. If it does so, that announcement is likely in January 2008 as well. In the past, the Socialist Equality Party has run presidential candidates in 1996 and 2004. It also ran persidential candidates under the party’s old name (Workers League) in 1992, 1988 and 1984.

Senator Chris Dodd is not on the Virginia Democratic presidential primary ballot because his circulators turned in the petition to the state Democratic Party headquarters, rather than the State Board of Elections. By the time the mistake was understood, the deadline had passed. The Dodd campaign is trying to persuade the State Board of Elections to certify him anyway. UPDATE: the post above said he turned in the signatures to the state party, but that is incorrect. His campaign turned them in to Richmond City Hall. The State Board of Elections has since denied his appeal to be on the ballot even though he had not turned in his signatures at the right location.