Same State Rule

From Ballot Access News:

"Green Party Watch recently said that the U.S. Constitution forbids a party from running a candidate for president and a candidate for vice-president who are both from the same state. This is a common misconception.

The 12th Amendment says that a presidential elector can’t vote for someone for president and someone else for vice-president, if both candidates are from that elector’s home state. So, the only barrier is that the electors from one particular state can’t vote for such a team. Electors in the other 49 states are free to vote for a team in which both members are from the same state.

Also, the ban only applies to residence in December of the presidential election, the month when the electors vote. So if a minor party did carry the state in which both the president and vice-president live, the electors are still free to vote for that team if either the presidential candidate, or the vice-presidential candidate, moves out of that state before the mid-December date when the electors vote.

George W. Bush and Dick Cheney both lived in Texas when they were nominated in 2000, but Cheney switched his residence to Wyoming, so that the Bush-Cheney ticket was able to receive the votes of the Texas electors.

In the past, the Socialist Workers Party frequently nominated two New Yorkers, one for president and one for vice-president. The party’s national office has always been in New York and it was usually more convenient to the party to have both candidates living in New York. Challenges to the party’s ballot position in New York were made on the basis of residence, but the New York State Courts always upheld the SWP’s ballot position."

Michael H. Drucker
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What’s Next For New York Voters?

DREs may be gone, but there’s much to do!

Fighting off DREs and making it possible for New Yorkers to vote on paper ballots was an essential first step. We needed to win the fight for paper ballots in order to have software independence and a means to audit the results reported by the scanners. The battle for paper ballots turned out to be a longer struggle than anyone anticipated – five long years. We fought hard and never let up, and we won. But sweet as this victory was my friends, it was only Phase One.

In one way, Phase One was easy because we were focused, indeed we needed to focus, on one issue and one issue only – paper ballots for New York. Now, in our new HAVA mandated environment, we no longer have that luxury since there are several important areas that require attention as we continue our work for election integrity.

Use the above link to get the full story of the next steps for NY Voters.

Michael H. Drucker
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MAY 2008 - NATIONAL INDEPENDENT CONFERENCE CALL

Independents activists from around the country talk about their efforts and where the independent movement is at with respect to the 2008 elections and beyond.

Use the above link to listen to the conference call!

Michael H. Drucker
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2008 Presidential Candidates

United States Presidential Election, November 4, 2008

Nominee: Barack Obama
Party: Democratic
Home state: Illinois
Running mate: TBD


Nominee: John McCain
Party: Republican
Home state: Arizona
Running mate: TBD


Nominee: Chuck Baldwin
Party: Constitution
Home state: Florida
Running mate: Darrell Castle


Nominee: Bob Barr
Party: Libertarian
Home state: Georgia
Running mate: Wayne Allyn Root


Nominee: Cynthia McKinney
Party: Green
Home state: Georgia
Running mate: Rosa Clemente


Nominee: Ralph Nader
Party: Independent
Home state: Connecticut
Running mate: Matt Gonzalez


Use the above link for more third party candidates!

Michael H. Drucker
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Voter ID Continued

Some more commentary on why the Voter ID issue has become a bigger issue this year.

"The idea behind Voter ID legislation is based on a foundation of common sense. Simply put, people need photo identification to cash a check, board a plane or apply for food stamps, in addition to countless other activities of life. It therefore goes without saying that the showing of photo identification should also be required for those wishing to vote."

Examples: The 2004 gubernatorial race in Washington State was filled with irregularities. After the election was held and subsequently contested, a Washington State Superior Court found that 1,400 felons voted illegally, along with the votes of fifty-three dead people and two non-citizens. There were also twenty-seven double votes. Moreover, there has been evidence presented of dead people voting and helping to elect Ophelia Ford to the Tennessee state senate, and in another 2004 election, investigators in Milwaukee established that 4,500 more ballots were cast in excess of the number of voters who actually showed up to the polls, including 100 voters using fake names. In his book, “Turning Point,” former President Jimmy Carter discussed his race for Georgia State Senate in 1962, which involved a corrupt local sheriff who had cast votes for the dead. Court intervention was necessary before Carter was finally declared the winner.

A United States Department of Justice voting rights lawsuit in Noxubee County, MS against a defendant named Ike Brown. It was alleged that Brown, a convicted felon and head of the local Democratic Party, set up a political machine that worked to guarantee the election of his approved candidates to local office. A major contention in the litigation against Brown was that “the local election board’s failure to purge the voter registration roll to eliminate persons who have moved or died and who are thus no longer eligible voters increased the opportunity for voter fraud by creating the potential for persons to vote under others’ names.”

Without the mechanisms in place to verify voter identity and to confirm voter fraud, there are numerous abuses each year that are not documented. Considering our nation’s long history of voter anomalies, it is a violation of common sense and logical analysis to claim that electoral fraud does not occur.

Twenty-seven states already passed some form of Voter ID legislation.

Michael H. Drucker
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DNC Convention Surprises

Here are some surprises that could happen at the Democratic Convention:

Clinton will request the Rules Committee to reinstate here 4 delegates from MI.

Clinton will request the Rules Committee to reinstate the full delegate vote in MI and FL. Others may also make this request.

Clinton will try to get some of her issue solutions as part of the Party's Platform.

Her name will be put in nomination on the floor for VP.

What are your surprises?

Michael H. Drucker
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