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* Unless they find some real money, and I doubt they will unless the Democrats step in to “help,” then this likely won’t have any impact on the governor’s race…
The Illinois Libertarian Party candidates will be on the November 2014 ballot, the State Board of Elections Board decided Friday.
“We’re certified and we’re on the ballot,” Brian Lambrecht of the DuPage County Libertarians told Illinois Review shortly after leaving the hearing in Chicago.
“The Republicans did everything they could to discredit the petition signatures to get us from the 46,000 signatures we gathered to below the required 25,000 signature threshold, but they failed,” Lambrecht said.
The only independent/3rd party candidate to impact an Illinois governor’s race was in 2010, when Scott Lee Cohen spent nearly $4 million and split part of the anti-Quinn vote with Bill Brady. The Libertarians received less than a point last time around.
The Green Party received ten percent of the vote in 2006, but had zero impact on the outcome.
No money, no real campaign, no impact.
* By the way, the Greens were kicked off the ballot…
Illinois Green Party candidates for statewide office – including Harvard attorney Scott Summers – likely will not appear on the Nov. 4 ballot after a federal judge on Thursday rejected a lawsuit aimed at forcing their inclusion.
While U.S. District Judge John Tharp Jr. in his 20-page opinion appeared to sympathize with some of the party’s arguments that the extra requirements imposed on third parties are unconstitutional, he concluded that he is bound to uphold the state’s constitutionally valid requirement when it comes to the number of signatures, which under Illinois State Board of Elections rules it did not meet.
Tharp called the Green Party’s predicament “a situation of the plaintiffs’ own making,” concluding that it had plenty of time before the election process started challenging the requirements, rather than filing a July lawsuit after the filing period ended. Candidates for the Nov. 4 ballot must be certified by Friday.
“What the plaintiffs have effectively created is a situation in which the only preliminary remedy that can be fashioned is to strike the ballot access provision that has been held to be constitutionally valid while allowing the allegedly unconstitutional provisions to remain. A cure that removes healthy tissue rather than the cancer has little to recommend it, and the plaintiffs’ reliance on that backward logic falls well short of meeting their burden …” Tharp wrote.
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:36 pm
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Bad new for the Greens and the rest of us. The two party system is the worst part of our democracy. Wish we had more choices so the government would have to build coalitions like many European democracies do. Not that I often envy Europe, but on this, I certainly do. Libertarians will get my vote this year.
Comment by Shemp Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:42 pm
I agree with Rich. Very little impact. Rauner has a lot of Liberatarian appeal. The real danger for the Republicans would have been a third party that had a conservative platform on social issues like abortion. That could have cost Rauner some votes.
Comment by Frank Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:44 pm
If they get even a little bit of money and run a pro-life message (contrasted with PQ and Rauner pro-choice message) downstate either on TV or Radio or Mail, it could potentially make a dent. Any pro-life voters would, I assume, go to Rauner - giving them a pro-life alternative could make an impact…
Comment by Lakewood Balmoral Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:44 pm
“Rauner has a lot of Liberatarian appeal.”
Rauner does support raising the income tax (only to lower it again) and a bunch of service taxes, as well as closing corporate loopholes. That doesn’t look terribly libertarian.
Are social conservatives enthused enough about Rauner to vote for him in large numbers? That’s what I wonder.
Comment by Grandson of Man Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:48 pm
“The only independent/3rd party candidate to impact an Illinois governor’s race was in 2010″
1986?
Certainly different circumstances, but definite impact.
Comment by Joe Bidenopolous Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 1:51 pm
Opps
Another misstep for Bungler Bruce and the armed ballot security rentals….better add another check out line at the credit union “loan” exits
Comment by CircularFiringSquad Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:01 pm
Rich - You were correct yesterday, I did not copy and paste the entire article. I have no problem with the ruling or the judge’s reasoning. The Greens met the two requirements that will be ruled unconstitutional - the “flimsy and bereft of logic” full-slate law and the “baffling” requirement to notarize every page - and didn’t meet the one requirement which will not - the signature requirement. The Greens deserved to be left off the ballot, no argument from me there.
But the ruling does not negate the case against the full-slate and notary requirements. The full-slate law has essentially kept everyone but Ds and Rs off the ballot for county-wide offices since the Harold Washington Party of the 1980s. That is not democratic and that is just plain wrong. The Libertarians filed suit against the full-slate law a while ago and its making its way slowly through the courts. Considering Judge Tharp’s reaction to the full-slate law, I’d say the state will once again be on the losing end trying to protect election laws that discriminate against political independents and others and that are illegal and violate the US Constitution.
And here’s the part of the article that you left out.
Tharp stated in his opinion that several of the Greens’ complaints had legitimacy. He called the state’s support for the full-slate requirement “flimsy and bereft of logic,” especially given the ongoing debate over whether offices such as lieutenant governor and comptroller should be eliminated. Tharp also questioned the “baffling requirement” that each sheet of signatures be notarized separately, even if they were collected by the same person.
“The plaintiffs have made a strong case at least one of the restrictions they target is a ’severe’ burden on their constitutional rights,” Tharp wrote.
Comment by Jeff Trigg Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:02 pm
“Wish we had more choices so the government would have to build coalitions like many European democracies do.”
Yeah, like when it takes Belgium a year and a half to form a coalition government. European multi-member seats and party lists make it even worse, as the same establishment party leaders are guaranteed a seat and permanently in power, without even a chance to primary them. That system forces coalitions and “getting along”, so they will never have bold leaders making bold decisions. Voters never have a real choice to change the direction of their country.
Comment by Southwest Cook Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:13 pm
iirc, even Lex Green’s small vote total would have been enough to put Mr. Brady ahead of Mr. Quinn.
While it is unlikely this race will tighten as much as the 2010 race, weirder things have happened. We may eventually look back on August 15th as the luckiest day of another “lucky” Quinn campaign, with Libertarians but not Greens on the ballot and Quinn winning a close one.
Comment by Formerly Known As... Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:16 pm
===when it takes Belgium a year and a half to form a coalition government===
lol
Congress has barely passed anything in four years.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:16 pm
That’s why Team Rauner had its gun guards harass the libertarian group’s petition signers because they aren’t a threat. Ah-huh.
Comment by admin Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:18 pm
==If they get even a little bit of money and run a pro-life message ==
Aren’t Libertarians generally pro choice? Is their nominee this year not?
Comment by Anonymoiis Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:21 pm
- admin - good point.
Comment by Frank Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:26 pm
Jeff: Thanks for sharing your insights.
Comment by Anon Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:41 pm
The irony of trying to get term limits on the ballot and kick off the Libertarian Party at the same time.
Comment by Almost the Weekend Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:45 pm
Not sure I agree with this, maybe it’s just how it is worded:
In 2006 Whitney got over 10% of the vote and in 2010 Cohen got less than 4%. Whitney was endorsed by the Rockford Register Star and took almost 25% of the vote in Winnebago County. Comparing two guys who had absolutely no chance, Whitney ran a far more effective campaign and had broader support that Cohen and his $4 million.
Just because Brady was able to pull closer to Quinn in 2010 than Topinka was to Blagojevich in 2006 doesn’t mean Whitney didn’t run a real campaign that had impact.
After 2006 the Greens had major party status for signature requirements, it’s an impressive achievement and also it’s a complete shame they went ahead and wasted it.
Comment by The Captain Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 2:58 pm
The difference 4 years ago was Scott Lee Cohen’s cash.
All this does is stops people from not totally skipping the race.
It also has little impact to my candidacy. I am sure - Norseman - will have a release welcoming anyone else to the fray.
Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 3:15 pm
I am very frustrated that my option to vote Green is denied due to current regulations. #SqueezytheTwoPartyPython
Comment by PolPal56 Friday, Aug 22, 14 @ 3:41 pm
==The two party system is the worst part of our democracy. Wish we had more choices so the government would have to build coalitions like many European democracies do.==
I too wish we had a mixed-member proportional system like much of Europe. Much easier to coalese around what the people really want if they can vote for whatever party they want & not just vote strategically for their preference of the two biggest parties.
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