Upcoming third party lawsuits for better ballot access and other easings of restrictions

Richard Winger's Ballot Access News reports several state third party court cases coming up in the next couple of months by COFOE (Coalition for Free & Open Elections). Third parties have historically had difficult hurdles in most states in gaining access to general election day ballots for their respective candidates, one among a myriad of other hardships. Of course, most states in the union include legislators, and judiciary, almost exclusively from both the Republican and Democratic parties.

Several lawsuits against repressive ballot access laws are likely to be filed in February and March, some of them with financial support from COFOE, others not. They include a lawsuit to be filed against the Ohio law that bans circulators for independent candidates unless the circulators are registered voters in Ohio; a lawsuit against Illinois law on the number of signatures for unqualified parties and independent candidates for US House; a similar lawsuit for independent candidates for US House in North Carolina; a similar lawsuit for independent candidates for US House in Alabama; a lawsuit against New Hampshire’s refusal to permit presidential substitution; and a lawsuit against the new March petition deadline for independent candidates (for office other than president) in Montana.