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Posted on 10/04/2002 12:25:20 PM PDT by Lysander
ELECTION 2002
Libertarian loses ballot ruling,
will try again in U.S. court Monday
By BRYAN LONG
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer
The Libertarians have one last chance to put Wayne Parker's name on the 11th Congressional District ballot. On Friday, Parker lost his case in Fulton Superior Court, but he will try again Monday morning in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.
Parker turned in roughly 18,000 signatures --- almost twice the number needed for third-party candidates to get on the ballot. In mid-September the Secretary of State's office said more than 8,400 signatures were not valid and Parker would not be a candidate.
He asked the Superior Court to include his name because he said the process of validating signatures was inconsistent and unfair.
No evidence was presented Friday to back this claim, however. "There's been no proof that stopping the election process from going forward while the plaintiff gathers evidence would get us anywhere," Chief Judge Elizabeth Long ruled.
The ruling came after the state's attorney asked only a handful of questions.
Although Parker said before the hearing that he had amassed "irrefutable evidence" to show he collected enough valid signatures no evidence was presented to contradict the Secretary of State's findings.
Linda Beazley, director of the state elections division, testified that her office found 856 additional names on Parker's petition. But that number still did not put him over the threshold needed to appear on the ballot.
Beazley also said that her office did not oversee how the counties verified signatures.
"We were not there to see that they do everything they are instructed to do," she said. Beazley said a field visit was made to only one of the 17 counties in the sprawling 11th district.
The fact that some counties were not accurate in validating signatures represented the crux of the Libertarians' argument. But Walker Chandler, representing the Libertarian Party, did not call any county elections supervisors to testify to how they verified signatures.
Parker is trying to become the first minor-party candidate in 59 years to appear on Georgia's U.S. House ballots.
The 11th could prove crucial to the balance of power of in the House. Republican Phil Gingrey and Democrat Roger Kahn are locked in a close race. Parker's presence could sway the race with only a few percentage points.
In NJ DemocRATSs fight for themselves in the name of voter choice, in Georgia they fight for themselves in the name of No-voter choice!
If there is no Justice, then there is just us!
Some years ago in (I believe) Illinois, a candidate who needed 25,000 signatures got more than 60,000. The two major parties challenged it. To make a long story short, they used every dirty trick in the book, and the candidate didn't make it.
It's stuff like this that is making me lose faith that we can solve our problems electorally.
Forgive my cynicism, but can we find some solace in the idea that it is likely a Libertarian would siphon Gingrey's votes?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. But what about the important stuff, like, did he have blue skin?
Actually in this race he seems to be pulling from both. The Liberal AJC called him a "practical Libertarian" because he is for gradual change over magic wand sweeping change. Gingrey has the personality and appeal of a popcorn fart. Kahn is a corrupt DemocRAT politico. It is why they are trying so hard to keep Parker off the ballot, this is a Libertarian that could win.
More like a magenta tint.
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