On May 26, Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry signed SB 800, which lets people who plan to circulate an initiative submit a description of their initiative for public scrutiny before they gather the signatures. Anyone who wishes to challenge the initiative’s subject matter, or the description of the initiative that will appear on the petition, must challenge early in the process.
Still pending on the Governor’s desk is HB 2246, which expands the period for collecting signatures for initiatives from 90 days to one year.
Since Richard Winger wrote that, HB 2246 passed and was signed into law. These are both very good things because ballot access for minor parties and ballot initiatives has previously been unfairly tough in Oklahoma. The more open and accessible the democratic process, the better.
Texas GOP Voter ID Bill Fails - Daily Kos diarist number six reposted a letter from a Texas Democratic Party leader praising the party for their successful efforts to stop a misguided and dishonest attempt by Republicans to pass a bill requiring some form of voter ID at the polls. number six at Daily Kos. Read more about it here.
Maine House Passes Bill to Shrink Itself - From Ballot Access News:
On May 29, the Maine House passed LD 144. This bill shrinks the size of the House from 151 members to 131 members.
I previously wrote about this:
Currently, a legislator covers a district of about 8,500 people, but that would be increased to about 10,000 people. It still needs to be approved by the Senate and by referendum (that's the way the constitution works in Maine). This is supposedly an effort to save money, but if you follow the patterns of election reform politics, it seems like just another example of incumbents trying to shut out competition, centralize power, and keep elections uncompetitive. It would make it less likely for the Green Party in Maine to elect another state legislator and it would increase the size of each district, making government less representative in Maine. This would be a terrible mistake if it passes, and if you live in Maine I strongly encourage you to contact your state Senators and tell them to vote against this, and to vote against it when you have the chance at the ballot box.
U.S. Justice Department Objects to Georgia’s Voter Registration Rules - The US Justice Department has rejected a program in Georgia requiring some form of ID to register to vote are disproportionately targeting minority voters. It has done this because Georgia election law is subject to review under the Voting Rights Act. Since the implementation of the program, about 200,000 registration forms were rejected because of improper identification. More info here, via Ballot Access News and Election Law Blog.
Video update from Citizens in Charge - Citizens in Charge is an organization led by Paul Jacob that works to limit and get rid of restrictions on the initiative process and expand the process. Here is a video update from them (note: their leadership is right-wing, but I don't think the aims of the organization are right-wing at all):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaprF1agr4A&
Rhode Island Ballot Access Victory - The Moderate Party of Rhode Island has succeeded, through a lawsuit, in getting the law that groups cannot circulate petitions in order to form a political party in odd years stricken down. Looks like they fought for their right to party... Ballot Access News.
Texas Bill, Relaxing Deadline for a Qualified Party to Certify Presidential Nominee, Passes Legislature - From Ballot Access News:
Late on the evening of May 27, the Texas legislature passed HB 1193, which relaxes the deadline for qualified parties to certify the names of their presidential and vice-presidential nominees. The old deadline was not met by either the Democratic nor Republican Parties in 2008, but the Secretary of State placed their nominees on the November ballot anyway. HB 1193 sets the deadline as one business day after the national convention of any qualified party adjourns.
If the old law had been followed by the Secretary of State, only Bob Barr (the Libertarian presidential nominee in 2008) would have appeared on the general election ballot in Texas.
