IF you'd rather NOT be pinged FReepmail me.
IF you'd like to be added FReepmail me. Thanks.
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************
Posted on 12/28/2011 1:52:30 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign said on Tuesday that it is filing a lawsuit to get on the ballot in the Virginia primary election after state officials announced last week that he failed to turn in the requisite 10,000 signatures.
"Virginia ballot access rules are among the most onerous and are particularly problematic in a multicandidate election,” said Perry campaign Communications Director Ray Sullivan in a statement. “We believe that the Virginia provisions unconstitutionally restrict the rights of candidates and voters by severely restricting access to the ballot, and we hope to have those provisions overturned or modified to provide greater ballot access to Virginia voters and the candidates seeking to earn their support."
The Perry campaign maintained that it turned in 11,911 signatures by the deadline when reporters inquired about the state’s announcement that the campaign had fallen short. Newt Gingrich also failed to hand in enough signatures, despite a last-minute push to gather supporters in the state. Only former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas have been certified to appear on the ballot in the state’s March 6 primary.
The Virginia Board of Elections has said that, barring a court order, the ballot is set. Perry’s campaign is not the only group seeking to change the state’s rules: Bill Pascoe of Citizens for the Republic, a conservative organization, is considering a challenge to the ballot certification process based on the fact that only candidates who submitted fewer than 15,000 signatures had their petitions cross-referenced with voting rolls, which Pascoe said leaves the system open to fraud.
“We’re prepared to take this to the pope,” he told CBS News/National Journal.
In the news release announcing the court challenge, Perry’s campaign noted that only 119,034 Virginians voted in the 2008 Republican primary, making the 10,000 signature requirement “unrealistic and onerous.” The legal challenge is seeking to both get Perry’s name on the ballot and to rule the state’s ballot access requirements unconstitutional.
This is new data, and there is no doubt that this makes the Virginia statute beyond reasonable.
Signature gatherers must sift through the 8 million citizens of Virginia to find the 1.5% who voted as republicans in the 2008 republican primary.
That isn't just onerous....it's unreasonable and irrational.
Why have them get signatures in any state? That is just crazy to me. I think once they announce everyone should be on all 50 state ballots. I am not necessarily excusing Newt or Perry or the others because they knew the rules or they would not have been trying to get them last minute. I understand that Virginia changed the rules but the question is “was it feasible to get the signatures had they not waited until the last minute?” I know for sure Newt did. Perry didn’t get on the Michigan ballot either. Is he suing that state too?
Somebody’s numbers are fouled up:
But it appears that the two that got on the ballot had less than 9% between them of the total Republican voters in the 2008 primary. And that’s out of 489,252 ballots cast. Paul 21,999 votes (4.49%) and Romney only 18,002 votes (3.67%). Assuming I’m on the right page.
Not to mention - if I’m correct - no “writes-ins” allowed and it’s an Open Primary.
Thanks, Jim.
Coudl this be the “Establishment” trying to rig the thing for Romney?
It was mentioned before on another thread that this election cycle is the first time they validated signatures. All other primaries they didn’t bother, even if the 15,000 signature threshold was not met.
Well, the rules were also changed at the last minute to include a nebulous clause about validating the addresses of petition signers to ensure VA residency. So I don’t think the campaigns should faulted for not meeting this stringency.
In any event, yeah I agree that having to go around manually hustling to get 10-15k signatures just to be on a ballot in this day and age, is a stupid requirement that makes no rational sense to me. The least they could do is set up a provision where residents could voluntarily sign the petition online.
[The Virginia Board of Elections has said that, barring a court order, the ballot is set.]
Stuck on stupid, is more like it. No court in the land will rule on this in time. Romney’s minions in the state of Virginia are truly loyal, as well as determined. The FIX is in!
Isn’t it amazing that Romney never has these problems?
IF you'd rather NOT be pinged FReepmail me.
IF you'd like to be added FReepmail me. Thanks.
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************
Also, look for Paul and Mitt to OPPOSE any attempt to change this..which will hurt them...
I wouldn’t call it loyal. I would call it bought, maybe not with money but with either promises or threats from the Romney supporters.
Does anyone love Romney? Besides his wife, I mean. I know his dog doesn’t love him.
His followers are loyal for other reasons.
The old, Rules are rules! statements, no doubt.
Bump!
another bump
Actually, they did meet the requirement. The requirement is to submit 10,000 or more names of registered Virginia voters, with 400(?) coming from each district.
Perry and Newt both submitted more than 10,000.
That the VAGOP supposedly checked the names is not a requirement. It is for local and state elections, but not for national elections. Furthermore, the VAGOP did not apply that standard to all candidates, selectively choosing to not do so for Romney and Paul.
That is an unequal application of law and is contrary to equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
As precedence has already been set in past elections (ie: the non-checking of submitted names... in all previous Presidential primaries), then that is the standard they must uphold for all, not for some (Romney and Paul).
It’s pretty cut and dry here. The VAGOP disregarded it’s own rules and precedents, following them for Romney and Paul... but ignoring them for the rest.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.