Last month, the New Hampshire Libertarian Party asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its election law lawsuit. The due date for the state’s response, August 29, has now passed. The state filed nothing, not even a notice that it is waiving its right to respond. However, there is never any legal requirement that the other side must respond to a cert petition.

The case concerns the state’s behavior in the presidential election of November 2008, when it printed two Libertarian Party presidential candidates on the ballot, one of whom was the party’s nominee, and one of whom was not. Almost all states, other than New Hampshire, provide legal protection for party names, and will not print a party label on the ballot next to the name of a candidate, in a general election, if the party did not nominate that candidate. The case is called Libertarian Party of New Hampshire v Gardner, 11-119. The U.S. Supreme Court has this case on its conference for September 23.