Americans Elect Qualifies as a Party in Florida
April 22nd, 2011On April 21, Americans Elect submitted the paperwork to qualify as a political party in Florida. This is an action Americans Elect would have been doing in Florida eventually, in any case. However, the filing was done earlier than it would have been otherwise. If HB 1355 is signed into law and Americans Elect (or possibly other parties as well) brings a lawsuit against the new law, it may be legally advantageous that Americans Elect had already been qualified, when the new, drastic ballot access restriction took effect.
April 22nd, 2011 at 3:51 pm
How do you know that filing was done earlier than it would have been done otherwise?
April 22nd, 2011 at 4:13 pm
I just do.
April 22nd, 2011 at 4:39 pm
How many states are they qualified in now?
April 22nd, 2011 at 5:10 pm
Two. Nevada is the other one.
April 22nd, 2011 at 5:21 pm
Interesting. I wonder if the Republicans will make the law retro active?! I wouldn’t put anything past these knuckleheads.
April 22nd, 2011 at 6:42 pm
Is it also qualified in Arizona? What about Alaska and Michigan?
April 22nd, 2011 at 6:59 pm
#5, the part of the bill on presidential ballot access for new parties doesn’t need to be retroactive. Because Americans Elect isn’t a national committee recognized by the FEC, the bill will apply to them in 2012 if they want to run a presidential candidate, and they do want to run a presidential candidate.
#6, “qualified” means a group that wants to be a party has submitted its petition and the state has said the petition has enough valid signatures. The states you mention are states in which Americans Elect has finished petitioning but it hasn’t turned in the signatures.
April 23rd, 2011 at 8:52 am
#7 Has Americans Elect filed as a political party with the FEC?
April 23rd, 2011 at 9:19 am
#8, Americans Elect is fierce on its insistence that it will not have candidates for any office except president. And the FEC’s rulings on either granting or denying “national committee” status all insist that a party can’t be recognized as a “national committee” until it has candidates for Congress in several states. Furthermore, once a group is a “national committee”, it can only receive $30,000 per year from any particular individual, and if Americans Elect were under that rule, its entire strategy would be wrecked. As you know, it depends on huge contributions from certain individuals.
April 23rd, 2011 at 11:42 am
Thanks for your reporting, excellent as usual.
April 23rd, 2011 at 9:49 pm
#9 The FEC requires that an entity first be a political party committee, before determining if it is a national committee of a political party. Has Americans Elect filed to be recognized as a political party committee?
The definition of a political party is set in law. It is the national committee status that is a subjective determination by the FEC.
Has Americans Elect filed to be recognized as a political party committee?
I know almost nothing about Americans Elect. While I may or may not be able to make huge contributions, I am not among those certain individuals on whom its strategy depends.
April 24th, 2011 at 2:10 am
[...] am indebted to Richard Winger of Ballot Access News for his discovery that Americans Elect has filed papers to gain recognition in the state of Florida [...]
April 24th, 2011 at 9:02 am
Will AE seek “Limited Political Party” status in Alaska then?
http://www.elections.alaska.gov/pi_lpp.php
April 25th, 2011 at 12:15 pm
FL is a BATTLEGROUND gerrymander State in the timebomb Electoral College — see 2000, 2004, 2008.
The Elephants in control of the regime will do ANYTHING necessary to NOT split the Elephant Prez votes in 2012.
April 25th, 2011 at 12:44 pm
[...] Source: Ballot Access News [...]