New Jersey has a law that the government will sponsor debates for any general election candidate for Governor who has raised at least $300,000. Normally only the Democratic and Republican nominees qualify. This year, 4 candidates qualified, including the Libertarian nominee (Jeff Pawlowski) and an independent candidate, Hector Castillo, whose ballot slogan is “education not corruption.”

The Democratic and Republicans have been invited to debate each other (with no one else participating) by a New Jersey Public TV station. However, it is likely that such a debate is illegal, under the U.S. Supreme Court decision Arkansas Educational TV Commission v Forbes (1998). Although the independent candidate in that case, Ralph Forbes, lost the case, that was only because the evidence showed he had a minimal campaign. The Supreme Court decision makes it clear that if Public TV sponsors a candidate’s debate, it must invite any candidate who is on the ballot and has a real campaign. Obviously, Pawlowski and Castillo do each have a real campaign.

On September 7, the 2nd circuit refused to expedite Tom Ognibene’s ballot access case in New York. This is the case that challenges the requirement that candidates for citywide office need 7,500 signatures, to be collected in 37 days. Ognibene, a Republican, would have needed this many registered Republicans to sign, even though there are only 440,000 registered Republicans in New York city. Ulrich v Mane, 05-4560.

The decision not to expedite the case means that the case will be settled after the primary election is over. This should give the judges a better chance to make a reasoned, calm decision, without the pressure of an election looming.

The New York law at issue, as applied to Republicans, is so strict, that the Republican Party has been left with no nominee for two of the three New York city citywide offices this year.

Late on Friday, September 9, an Ohio State Court of Appeals refused to remove 4 initiatives from the November 2005 ballot, even though they were placed on the ballot using out-of-state circulators. State ex rel Finan v Blackwell, 05-apd-08-854. The 4 initiatives all relate to election law. One lets anyone vote early; one imposes campaign finance restrictions; one provides for a state board of elections; and one sets up procedures for a nonpartisan body to draw congressional and legislative district boundaries.

The Court did not actually settle the question of whether out-of-state circulators are permitted in Ohio. Instead, the court found procedural flaws in the lawsuit that had been filed to remove the initiatives. Still pending in the US Court of Appeals is Ralph Nader’s challenge to the same restriction. Nader was removed from the Ohio ballot last year because some of his circulators were thought not to live in Ohio.