Two third-party candidates sue to access Oklahoma ballot

L: Green Party nominee Jill Stein  ||  R: American Delta Party & Reform Party nominee Roque De La Fuente

US presidential hopefuls sue for access to Oklahoma ballot

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) —Two U.S. presidential hopefuls and some of their supporters in Oklahoma are suing the state, arguing its ballot-access laws unconstitutionally discriminate against third-party and independent candidates for president.

The lawsuit was filed last week in federal court on behalf of Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein of Massachusetts and independent presidential candidate Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente of Florida. Three Oklahoma residents and Stein supporters also are listed as plaintiffs in the suit.

In a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City, Tulsa attorney James Linger seeks an injunction to stop the Oklahoma Election Board from enforcing its ballot-access laws. An Election Board spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Read more from The Journal Record (subscription required) and KGOU.

Oklahoma Libertarian Party gains ballot access

State recognizes Libertarian Party

(Oklahoma City) – Oklahoma State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax announced that the Libertarian Party has been certified as a recognized party in the state Monday after election officials reviewed and approved petitions submitted last month.

The Libertarians gathered 42,182 signatures. Of those, 30,517 were deemed valid. The minimum number needed to certify a new party was 24,745.

“This means Oklahomans can register as members of the Libertarian Party, and candidates can run as Libertarian for all partisan offices in the state,” Ziriax said. “The Libertarian Party also will receive a ballot line for President and Vice President in November’s General Election.”
There is a short window for those who would like to register as Libertarians before the June Statewide Primary and August Runoff Elections. Anyone who is currently registered and wishes to change their affiliation must do so by March 31 for the change to be processed before those elections.

The Libertarian Party has also notified the Secretary of the State Election Board that it will allow Independents to vote in its primary and runoff primary elections.

Those who want to change their affiliation or register as new voters in the Libertarian party must fill out and return a Voter Registration Application Form, which can be downloaded at www.elections.ok.gov. Forms are also available in person at county election boards, tag agencies and other locations.

UPDATE: Gary Johnson will won't be on ballot in Oklahoma

Sooner State knocks Libertarian hopeful off ballot

By Patrick B. McGuigan | CapitolBeatOK

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma State Election Board removed the Americans Elect party from the November presidential election ballot Wednesday, effectively knocking out Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson.

The decision was made based on the advice of the state Attorney General’s Office.

Earlier this summer, the state Americans Elect party had designated a slate of presidential electors and named Johnson as its candidate, even as the national party’s directors spiked the group’s nationwide drive to provide an alternative to the two major parties.

Secretary of the State Election Board Paul Ziriax said in a statement sent Wednesday morning to CapitolBeatOK:

“You have previously asked me about the conflicting instructions the State Election Board received from the Directors of the Americans Elect party and a local group claiming to on act on behalf of the Americans Elect party. (The Board of Directors of the party instructs that the Americans Elect party will not field any candidates for President or Vice President, while the local group instructs that the party has chosen candidates for President and Vice President – the same candidates chosen by the Libertarian Party in other states.)”

Ziriax said Assistant Attorney General Neal Leader advised the Election Board that it “should not place the Americans Elect Party president and vice-presidential candidates or presidential electors on the November 2012 general election ballot in Oklahoma.”

Ziriax told CapitolBeatOK, “Our staff will proceed with our general election ballot preparations accordingly.”

In his 20-page analysis of the legal questions involved, Leader said the national group retained control of the party’s ballot line, and the national directors’ decision held in the state.

Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News, said Leader’s written opinion “contains no references to any court cases to justify his opinion.”

Winger contends the Election Board and Leader “have acted in a deceitful manner.”

Americans Elect gained ballot status in March after a successful petition campaign that enjoyed the support of David Boren, now president of the University of Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma effort began with fanfare in January, achieving success in March, after a Libertarian-organized drive fell short of the required signatures. Oklahoma is widely considered one of the most difficult states for ballot access.

Just weeks ago, local activists submitted electors to state officials, in support of Johnson, but on a parallel track the national Americans Elect party informed the Election Board it was abandoning its drive “in all states in which Americans Elect has obtained a ballot access line” with the “unanimous written consent” of the national group’s directors.

Contact Patrick McGuigan at patrick@capitolbeatok.com.

Exclusive: Conflict and Confusion - Will Gary Johnson be on Oklahoma's ballot?

Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, erstwhile GOP-candidate-turned-Libertarian-Party-nominee, missed out on making the ballot in Oklahoma when the Oklahoma Libertarian Party failed to submit enough validated signatures to receive a ballot access. However, the story may not be over yet for Johnson and his Oklahoma Libertarian Party supporters.

Americans Elect successfully waged a ballot access campaign in Oklahoma earlier this year, with the intention of nominating a presidential candidate through their unconventional online voting process. The venture ultimately failed, as no candidate met their stated criteria, and thus the group did not nominate a candidate, after getting on the ballot in over 30 states.

All political parties had until August 8th to submit their nominees for president and vice-president (technically, they submit electors pledged to their party nominees).

On August 7th, Rex Lawhorn (Oklahoma state chairman of Americans Elect) submitted electors to the State Election Board for ballot certification. These electors were pledged to Gary Johnson for President and James Gray for Vice-President, the Libertarian Party candidates.

Americans Elect - State

But in a letter dated August 6th, the national Americans Elect organization wrote to the State Election Board intending to dissolve their status as a political party in Oklahoma.

Americans Elect - National

I contacted the State Election Board to ask some questions about the situation, and received a response from State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax.

"Attached are PDF scans of conflicting correspondence to the State Election Board from the national Americans Elect organization and an in-state group that says it is the Oklahoma chapter of Americans Elect. This is a very unusual situation, so we are seeking legal advice from our counsel at the Attorney General’s office about how to proceed," Ziriax told me in an email.

When there is an update to this story, I will post it.