OntheWilderSide

The Illinois Green Party is running a record number of candidates now that they have ballot status, and just a week later their legislature strikes back to change the law.  -ISW

from Ballot Access News:

Illinois House Passes Bill to Make it More Difficult for a Ballot-Qualified Party to Nominate Candidates

On April 8, the Illinois House passed HB 5263. Currently, Illinois ballot-qualified parties nominate by primary. However, the law generously lets them nominate someone by party meeting after the primary, if no one had run in that party’s primary for that particular office.

The bill would continue to let ballot-qualified parties nominate by party meeting after the primary was over (if no one had won the primary). But it would require such nominees by party meeting to submit a petition signed by 5% of the last vote cast for that office (or 25,000 signatures, whichever is less).

The bill passed the House by 97-13. The “No” votes included 9 Democrats and 4 Republicans. The Democrats are Mike Boland, John Bradley, John Fritchey, Paul Froehlich, Greg Harris, Lou Lang, David Miller, Cynthia Soto, and Wyvetter Younge. The Republicans are Elizabeth Coulson, Shane Cultra, Jim Durkin, and Keith Sommer.

It is possible that the Green Party, which is the only ballot-qualified party besides the Democratic and Republican Parties, could defeat this idea in court, if it is signed into law and if the Green Party chooses to challenge it. This year, the Green Party nominated more candidates by party meeting after the primary, then it did in the primary. Ballot access in the primary is somewhat difficult, requiring petitions of 3,000 signatures for statewide office, and typically 500 for U.S. House

Read entire post.

Related Post:

• IL GP files record # of candidates
• IL GP runs Cummings for Senate & record # for Congress
• Greens win early 2008 Elections
• IL Moderate Party Chair to Join Green Party

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