On February 28, the Missouri House passed HB 1310 by a vote of 94-40. It moves the petition deadline for all independent candidates from late July, to March. The bill now goes to the Senate.

The Missouri independent candidate petition deadline back in 1976 had been in April, but a US District Court that year struck it down, in McCarthy v Kirkpatrick. The state did not appeal and moved the deadline to August. A few years later it was moved to July.

Thus, the bill is unconstitutional. It is also unconstitutional under Anderson v Celebrezze, the US Supreme Court decision of 1983 that struck down Ohio’s independent presidential petition deadline of March 20. Ballot Access News editor Richard Winger is in NEw York but when he is home on March 4, he will e-mail each Missouri State Senator.