The Washington Post has this editorial, criticizing Virginia because, at the November 8, 2011 legislative elections, there were only 27 State House races with both a Democrat and a Republican on the ballot, out of 100 seats.
Unfortunately, the editorial does not tell its readers that Virginia is currently arguing in federal court that if must preserve its ballot access requirement that no one can circulate a petition to get someone on the ballot if the circulator doesn’t live in the district. Virginia’s Attorney General argues that without that restriction, the ballot would be too crowded. Virginia requires petitions, both for general election access by independent candidates and the nominees of unqualified parties, and also for a candidate to get on a primary ballot.
The lawsuit, Lux v Judd, is pending in U.S. District Court in front of a Judge who already upheld the restriction last year. Then the case went to the Fourth Circuit, which sent it back and said to rehear the case. The Fourth Circuit also said that the argument that the restriction is needed to show that the candidate has support is not a valid reason to uphold the law. But the Fourth Circuit gave the state a chance to come up with some new arguments.
Another reason there are so few candidates on the Virginia ballot is because of the state’s restrictive definition of “political party.” The Virginia law requires a group to poll at least 10% for a statewide race, to be a qualified party. Virginia’s 10% requirement is tied for third most difficult in the nation, after Pennsylvania’s 15% registration test, and Alabama’s 20% vote test. The median vote test of the 50 states is 2%. Except for the Reform Party 1995 through 1997, no party other than the Democratic or Republican Parties has been ballot-qualified in Virginia in the last 40 years. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.
Are the ghosts of WASHINGTON AND JEFFERSON AND MADISON AND HENRY AND RANDOLPH AND MASON AND MANY OTHER VA FOLKS IN 1776-1791 NOT HAPPY about the gerrymander math in VA ???
See – The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 edited by Max Farrand 1911 and 1937 editions — like a Trillion years ago now — regardless of the armies of media MORONS in almost dead newspapers, on TV, on radio, on the internet, etc.
How much robot party hack gerrymander (oligarchy / monarchy) EVIL in VA and ALL other States ???
DEMOCRACY NOW to END the EVIL rule of the minority rule gerrymander robot party hack MONSTERS from gerrymander HELL.
P.R. and nonpartisan App.V. — pending Condorcet math.
The somewhat amazing thing is that ALL of the gerrymander States have NOT copied the AL/PA/VA ANTI-Democracy systems — so as to have NO bothersome third parties and independents on the ballots.
How soon before there are ALL incumbents in a gerrymander house of a State legislature with NO opposition ???
See the fraud elections in the 1917-1991 ex-U.S.S.R. regime.
P.R. and nonpartisan App.V.
Richard,
I have relatives who live in Virginia. On vacation, am I barred (since I live out of state) from obtaining their signatures and then mailing it to the Secretary of the CP of Virginia?
Yes, Virginia certainly bars out-of-state circulators. Virginia still even bars Virginians from circulating district petitions if that voter doesn’t live in the district. It is likely that latter law will be invalidated fairly soon, however. But it may be some time before the Virginia ban on out-of-state circulators is overcome. The 4th circuit has never had a case on the out-of-state issue. None of the other states in the 4th circuit have bans on out-of-state circulators. Those states are West Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Richard,
Thank you for the prompt reply. At least I know that I can contact other relatives in North Carolina, however 🙂
Each State is a SOVEREIGN Nation-State regime.
Electors-Voters in each regime area and subarea.
EVERYBODY else is a political alien from another universe.
Way too difficult for the MORON courts to understand.
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