Free Republic

West Virginia’s secretary of state on Thursday denied Don Blankenship’s bid to appear on the Senate ballot as a third-party candidate, a victory for Republicans hoping to consolidate votes against Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in the general election. Secretary of State, Mac Warner, said Blankenship’s bid would violate the state’s "sore loser law" preventing a candidate who lost a primary from running again in the general election. Blankenship ran in the May GOP primary but finished a distant third, and submitted signatures earlier this week to run in November as the Constitution Party candidate.

Texas has a "Sore Loser" primary law. Here's how it works: In order to be on the Ballot for the March 1st primary, you must file by Dec 14, 2015. If you are an independent candidate for the Nov, 2016 General, you must also file by Dec 14, 2015. If you are a political party that doesn't choose your candidate by Primary ballot, you must file your party's intent to field a candidate by Dec 14, 2015. If you file for a place on the ballot for Mar 1, 2016, and you do not win the Primary in which you...

A Florida Senate committee has recommended making it tougher for political candidates to switch or leave parties in mid-campaign, a move spurred by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist's bolt from the Republican Party to run as an independent for U.S. Senate. The Florida Senate Ethics and Elections Committee also calls for a "sore-loser statute" that would prohibit party-affiliated candidates who lose a primary from re-entering the race as in independent. "The issue is whether Florida law regarding candidates who change political parties while running for office is unambiguous and expansive enough to promote the state's interests in political stability and maintaining...