Once again, third parties are forced to go to court to gain access to the ballots in various states. An article by Melanie Bengtson, an intern with the First Amendment Center Online, reports that “presidential ballot-access lawsuits have been filed in at least eight states this year. Two candidates stand out among dozens of third-party candidates — Libertarian Party nominee Bob Barr and Ralph Nader, a presidential campaign veteran running as an independent.”
Barr and the Libertarian Party have ballot access lawsuits pending in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Massachusetts, and West Virginia. In the Massachusetts lawsuit, the Libertarian Party will be represented by the ACLU of Massachusetts. The lawsuit in Tennessee was filed jointly in January by the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, and the Constitution Party. Ralph Nader is expected to file suite in Idaho.
Adds Bengtson:
Former Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, the American Independent Party’s Alan Keyes, and the Ohio Socialist Party and have also filed ballot-access lawsuits this presidential election year.
http://thirdpartywatch.com/2008/08/25/third-party-candidates-take-ballot-access-fights-to-court/
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