Arkansas House Approves Bill Lowering Signature Requirements, but Adds New Hurdles to Third Parties

Posted on by March 17, 2007
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On Friday, the Arkansas House approved HB2353, a bill to lower the requirements for third parties to 10,000 signatures. The bill passed 66-23.

State law currently requires signatures equal to three percent of the total number of voters in the last election, which was 24,171 last year.

However, the bill adds hurdles to the process, most notably, reducing the signature gathering time from 150 days to 60. It also removes a 15-day period new parties have to gather additional signatures if petitions are rejected by the secretary of state.

The bill was introduced in response to a successful lawsuit by the Green Party. U.S. District Judge George Howard Jr. ordered the state to place the Green Party on the ballot, ruling that the signature requirements violated the party’s candidate for governor’s rights.

Constitution Party Legislator Makes the Difference in Montana

Posted on by March 15, 2007
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The Constitution Party’s Montana legislator Rick Jore is in a very unique position. With Republicans holding 50 votes in the House, and Democrats holding 49, Jore is the swing vote.

A recent feature on him in the Daily Inter Lake is very complimentery:

Jore is well aware of the intricacies of the situation. The six Republican spending bills are intended to limit the increase in state spending over the next two years to around 13 percent.

For the House Republican leadership, that’s far preferable to the 22 percent spending increase that was in Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s proposed budget.

“I’m not comfortable being in a game of political strategy,” Jore said Monday, just a couple of days before House floor debates are scheduled to begin on the six budget bills. “Where I am comfortable is voting on my oath to uphold the Constitution and to uphold my political convictions.”

“Rick’s challenge will be, can he live with chipping away at the size of government, or will he vote absolutely no, giving a Democratic majority?” said Rep. Craig Witte, a Republican freshman from Kalispell.

“From what I understand, it is a tremendously unique situation,” said Rep. Doug Cordier, a freshman Democrat from Columbia Falls. “And in some ways, I’m glad it’s Rick who’s in that position. He’s certainly not going to be pressured by anybody.”

Jore’s position of power in the Legislature is remarkable, considering the rough welcome he got as a Constitution Party lawmaker who was appointed to chair the House Education Committee.

“People made him out to be a tyrant,” said House Speaker Scott Sales, R-Bozeman, adding that most lawmakers have since come to recognize Jore as being “very fair and balanced” in the way he runs the committee.

Those views, purveyed in the media, were based on Jore’s legislation to eliminate compulsory school attendance and his conservative views on school funding, including his proposal to eliminate the state’s participation in the federal No Child Left Behind program.

Jore chuckles at how he is perceived by some. “Oh yeah, here comes the bad guy to town,” he said. “I can’t help what people assume about me … All I can do is stand up for what the Constitution was founded on.”

He unabashedly advocates some of his more controversial positions.

Read the rest of the article.

Illinois Legislative Committee Approves Lowering Signature Requirements for Minor Parties and Independents

Posted on by March 15, 2007
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On March 15, the Illinois Senate Government Committee passed SB 733, an excellent bill. It lowers the number of signatures for minor party and independent candidates so that they are equal to the number of signatures needed by a major party member seeking a place on a primary ballot. This would decrease the statewide petition requirement from 25,000 to 5,000 signatures. It would lower the US House requirement from approximately 12,000 signatures to approximately 1,000 signatures. Thanks to Jeff Trigg for this news.