- Georgia
« Ballot Access Lawsuits
-
Libertarian Party of
Georgia
June 3, 2020 / By Laura Williams / Press Release
In a ruling issued on June 3, the 11th Circuit Court required a Georgia district court to consider whether candidates of the Libertarian Party of Georgia had been unconstitutionally excluded by the state’s ballot access requirements.
Independent and third-party candidates must collect thousands of signatures and petition the (partisan) Secretary of State before running. These costly restrictions do NOT apply to Democrats or Republicans. Even when a “major party” fails to run a candidate, no third party or independent can act as challenger. 60 percent of Georgia Assembly incumbents ran unopposed in 2018.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia filed a separate request for injunctive relief in March, when the CDC’s social distancing guidelines made collecting the required signatures door-to-door and in public both illegal and immoral.
Arguing not just for themselves but for other unrecognized parties and political independents, Libertarians told the district court that ballot access barriers violated their associational rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments and their Equal Protection rights under the 14th Amendment. Libertarian candidates were being denied the right to run for office, they claimed, and Libertarian voters were disenfranchised when their chosen candidates were blocked from appearing on ballots.
“Today’s ruling from the Court of Appeals means that the Secretary of State is going to have to justify a ballot-access scheme that has deprived Georgia voters of choice in congressional elections for more than 70 years,” said Bryan Sells, the attorney for the Libertarian Party and its co-plaintiffs in both suits. Sells has handled the case pro-bono, but the Georgia LP has raised $13,000 to cover expenses and court fees.
Martin Cowen, Georgia resident and the most recent of more than two dozen candidates to try and fail to meet the signature requirement to run for U.S. House, is a plaintiff in both suits.
Read the Ruling: Martin Cowen, et al. v. Georgia Secretary of State, No. 19-14065 (11th Cir. 2020)
Libertarian Party of Georgia
March 26, 2020 / By Ryan Graham / Press Release
Atlanta, Georgia — Door-to-door canvassing for signatures under COVID-19 quarantine cannot be required as a condition of appearing on local ballots, the Libertarian Party of Georgia argues in its second lawsuit filed against the Georgia Secretary of State. The Party’s ongoing suit, on behalf of all political bodies and independent candidates, challenges the legal requirement that every district candidate either 1. file as a Democrat or Republican or 2. undertake the onerous task of collecting signatures from up to 5 percent of the registered voters in the relevant district. The limited 180 day window in which candidates must collect those signatures is now interrupted by coronavirus-related quarantine, in which people have been instructed to shelter at home and limit their contact with others. The two requirements – in-person signature petitions and mandatory social distancing – leave Libertarians, Greens, and others no way to fulfill the state’s ballot access requirements without endangering hundreds of lives.
Martin Cowen, the most recent of more than two dozen candidates to try and fail to meet the signature requirement to run for U.S. House, is a plaintiff in both suits. Bryan Sells, the attorney for the Libertarian Party and its co-plaintiffs in both suits, says the Secretary of State’s office lacks the power to pro-rate the number of signatures that should be required in response to these extraordinary circumstances. The issue must be settled by a court, and filing this suit requests a judicial review of the requirements.
“We’re optimistic that the courts will recognize how inappropriate it would be for independent candidates to go knocking on doors, handing around pens and clipboards, and speaking to voters about how signature requirements work,” said Cowen, who is required to collect signatures in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District. “Georgia’s signature requirements are unconstitutional under the best of circumstances. To enforce them now is not just unfair, but dangerously negligent of 2020’s novel public health concerns.”
Georgia’s laws governing who may appear on election ballots are the worst in the nation. Republicans and Democrats appear on ballots almost automatically, while independent and minor-party candidates must collect thousands of signatures, petition the state, and pay dearly to earn that access. The Libertarian party maintains that all such favoritism and exclusion is an encroachment on the civil liberties not just of candidates, but of the majority voters whose views are not represented by either R or D candidates.
To protect Georgian’s rights to have competitive, fair, and free elections, the initial lawsuit recommends reducing the number of petition signatures candidates need to be on the ballot, or eliminating the signature requirement for all candidates (not just libertarians). Under the current emergency conditions issued to combat the spread of COVID-19, collecting thousands of in-person signatures is not only unnecessary and unconstitutional, it is immoral and downright dangerous.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia is committed to America’s heritage of individual freedoms, limited government, and social tolerance. We value a free market economy of innovation and prosperity, a foreign policy of peace and non-intervention, and liberty and justice for all. If this sounds like you, learn more about what we do and what we stand for. You can find a libertarian affiliate in your community, join us at community service events and business meetings every month, or just sign up to let us know you’re interested. A world of peace, prosperity, and personal freedom is possible. Be a part of making it happen.
Libertarian Party of Georgia
October 11, 2019 / By Ryan Graham / Press Release
“Georgia’s ballot barriers are so strict that no independent or third-party candidates have qualified for U.S. House general elections since their passage in 1943. Voters are increasingly dissatisfied with the two major parties, but those same parties block all competitors. Georgia’s voters deserve more options when they go to vote,” said Bryan Sells, legal counsel representing the Libertarian Party of Georgia and its fellow plaintiffs.
Judge Leigh May denied the Libertarian Party of Georgia’s Motion for Summary Judgment but granted, in part, the Georgia Secretary of State’s motion for Summary Judgment on September 23, 2019. Despite collecting thousands of signatures, no third party candidate met the burden set by Republicans and Democrats.
“We welcome the opportunity to move this case forward. Recent rulings in the 11th Circuit and the Supreme Court give us reason to be optimistic about our success on appeal,” said Martin Cowen, plaintiff and 2018 (frustrated) Libertarian candidate for US House in District 13.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia continues to fight for every Georgian’s right to vote, and for fair, competitive elections for all offices.
For more information about the state of ballot access laws in the Georgia, check out this article that does an excellent job giving a high level view.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia is committed to America’s heritage of individual freedoms, limited government, and social tolerance. We value a free market economy of innovation and prosperity, a foreign policy of peace and non-intervention, and liberty and justice for all. If this sounds like you, learn more about what we do and what we stand for. You can find a libertarian affiliate in your community, join us at community service events and business meetings every month, or just sign up to let us know you’re interested. A world of peace, prosperity, and personal freedom is possible. Be a part of making it happen.
June 3, 2020 / By Laura Williams / Press Release
In Victory Over Two-Party System, Georgia Libertarians Win Reconsideration Of Equal Protection In Ballot Access Case
11th
Circuit
Vacates
District Court; Rules Georgia Must Revisit Third
Parties’ Exclusion From Elections
Atlanta, Georgia — Georgia law functionally excludes anyone but
Republicans and Democrats from appearing on many election ballots. But
the Libertarian Party of Georgia won a victory over the Secretary of
State today that may signal change.In a ruling issued on June 3, the 11th Circuit Court required a Georgia district court to consider whether candidates of the Libertarian Party of Georgia had been unconstitutionally excluded by the state’s ballot access requirements.
Independent and third-party candidates must collect thousands of signatures and petition the (partisan) Secretary of State before running. These costly restrictions do NOT apply to Democrats or Republicans. Even when a “major party” fails to run a candidate, no third party or independent can act as challenger. 60 percent of Georgia Assembly incumbents ran unopposed in 2018.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia filed a separate request for injunctive relief in March, when the CDC’s social distancing guidelines made collecting the required signatures door-to-door and in public both illegal and immoral.
Arguing not just for themselves but for other unrecognized parties and political independents, Libertarians told the district court that ballot access barriers violated their associational rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments and their Equal Protection rights under the 14th Amendment. Libertarian candidates were being denied the right to run for office, they claimed, and Libertarian voters were disenfranchised when their chosen candidates were blocked from appearing on ballots.
“Today’s ruling from the Court of Appeals means that the Secretary of State is going to have to justify a ballot-access scheme that has deprived Georgia voters of choice in congressional elections for more than 70 years,” said Bryan Sells, the attorney for the Libertarian Party and its co-plaintiffs in both suits. Sells has handled the case pro-bono, but the Georgia LP has raised $13,000 to cover expenses and court fees.
Martin Cowen, Georgia resident and the most recent of more than two dozen candidates to try and fail to meet the signature requirement to run for U.S. House, is a plaintiff in both suits.
Read the Ruling: Martin Cowen, et al. v. Georgia Secretary of State, No. 19-14065 (11th Cir. 2020)
Libertarian Party of Georgia
March 26, 2020 / By Ryan Graham / Press Release
PRESS RELEASE: Libertarian Party Of Georgia Files Second Suit Against Georgia Secretary Of State: “Collecting Signatures Under COVID Quarantine Isn’t Just Unnecessary, It’s Dangerous.”
To view the complaint download here.
Atlanta, Georgia — Door-to-door canvassing for signatures under COVID-19 quarantine cannot be required as a condition of appearing on local ballots, the Libertarian Party of Georgia argues in its second lawsuit filed against the Georgia Secretary of State. The Party’s ongoing suit, on behalf of all political bodies and independent candidates, challenges the legal requirement that every district candidate either 1. file as a Democrat or Republican or 2. undertake the onerous task of collecting signatures from up to 5 percent of the registered voters in the relevant district. The limited 180 day window in which candidates must collect those signatures is now interrupted by coronavirus-related quarantine, in which people have been instructed to shelter at home and limit their contact with others. The two requirements – in-person signature petitions and mandatory social distancing – leave Libertarians, Greens, and others no way to fulfill the state’s ballot access requirements without endangering hundreds of lives.
Martin Cowen, the most recent of more than two dozen candidates to try and fail to meet the signature requirement to run for U.S. House, is a plaintiff in both suits. Bryan Sells, the attorney for the Libertarian Party and its co-plaintiffs in both suits, says the Secretary of State’s office lacks the power to pro-rate the number of signatures that should be required in response to these extraordinary circumstances. The issue must be settled by a court, and filing this suit requests a judicial review of the requirements.
“We’re optimistic that the courts will recognize how inappropriate it would be for independent candidates to go knocking on doors, handing around pens and clipboards, and speaking to voters about how signature requirements work,” said Cowen, who is required to collect signatures in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District. “Georgia’s signature requirements are unconstitutional under the best of circumstances. To enforce them now is not just unfair, but dangerously negligent of 2020’s novel public health concerns.”
Georgia’s laws governing who may appear on election ballots are the worst in the nation. Republicans and Democrats appear on ballots almost automatically, while independent and minor-party candidates must collect thousands of signatures, petition the state, and pay dearly to earn that access. The Libertarian party maintains that all such favoritism and exclusion is an encroachment on the civil liberties not just of candidates, but of the majority voters whose views are not represented by either R or D candidates.
To protect Georgian’s rights to have competitive, fair, and free elections, the initial lawsuit recommends reducing the number of petition signatures candidates need to be on the ballot, or eliminating the signature requirement for all candidates (not just libertarians). Under the current emergency conditions issued to combat the spread of COVID-19, collecting thousands of in-person signatures is not only unnecessary and unconstitutional, it is immoral and downright dangerous.
###
The Libertarian Party of Georgia is committed to America’s heritage of individual freedoms, limited government, and social tolerance. We value a free market economy of innovation and prosperity, a foreign policy of peace and non-intervention, and liberty and justice for all. If this sounds like you, learn more about what we do and what we stand for. You can find a libertarian affiliate in your community, join us at community service events and business meetings every month, or just sign up to let us know you’re interested. A world of peace, prosperity, and personal freedom is possible. Be a part of making it happen.
Libertarian Party of Georgia
October 11, 2019 / By Ryan Graham / Press Release
Libertarian Party Of Georgia Appeals Ballot Access Lawsuit
Atlanta, GA – The Libertarian Party of Georgia and fellow plaintiffs filed an appeal with the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit regarding their right to appear on ballots for U.S. House. Current law recognizes only the Democratic and Republican Parties as having ‘ballot access,’ and all other political body and independent candidates. The barriers set to qualify have so far blocked all challengers.“Georgia’s ballot barriers are so strict that no independent or third-party candidates have qualified for U.S. House general elections since their passage in 1943. Voters are increasingly dissatisfied with the two major parties, but those same parties block all competitors. Georgia’s voters deserve more options when they go to vote,” said Bryan Sells, legal counsel representing the Libertarian Party of Georgia and its fellow plaintiffs.
Judge Leigh May denied the Libertarian Party of Georgia’s Motion for Summary Judgment but granted, in part, the Georgia Secretary of State’s motion for Summary Judgment on September 23, 2019. Despite collecting thousands of signatures, no third party candidate met the burden set by Republicans and Democrats.
“We welcome the opportunity to move this case forward. Recent rulings in the 11th Circuit and the Supreme Court give us reason to be optimistic about our success on appeal,” said Martin Cowen, plaintiff and 2018 (frustrated) Libertarian candidate for US House in District 13.
The Libertarian Party of Georgia continues to fight for every Georgian’s right to vote, and for fair, competitive elections for all offices.
For more information about the state of ballot access laws in the Georgia, check out this article that does an excellent job giving a high level view.
###
The Libertarian Party of Georgia is committed to America’s heritage of individual freedoms, limited government, and social tolerance. We value a free market economy of innovation and prosperity, a foreign policy of peace and non-intervention, and liberty and justice for all. If this sounds like you, learn more about what we do and what we stand for. You can find a libertarian affiliate in your community, join us at community service events and business meetings every month, or just sign up to let us know you’re interested. A world of peace, prosperity, and personal freedom is possible. Be a part of making it happen.
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Action.
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