SwiftVets.com

[Roon]

I heard on the news that Kerry's campaign plan to strain the Nader campaign with legal fees has worked. Sounds like some rich Republicans need to go donate some money to help his campaign out to help convince more of those anti-war voters to Vote Nader.

[.::geo::.]

I found this article today, and plan to do a write up for the local paper on the REAL voter suppression going on. Basically the Democratic party trying to keep Nader off the ballots.

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http://www.duluthsuperior.com/mld/duluthsuperior/news/local/9807898.htm




Posted on Fri, Oct. 01, 2004

Nader back on ballot in Wisconsin, court rules


BY JR ROSS

ASSOCIATED PRESS


MADISON - The state Supreme Court ordered Ralph Nader back on the Wisconsin ballot Thursday, ruling the longtime consumer activist had substantially met the requirements to go before the voters this fall as an independent presidential candidate.

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin sued to knock Nader off the ballot, arguing he had failed to meet minimal standards required under state law to qualify as an independent candidate.

But the court voted unanimously to overturn a circuit judge's decision handed down this week that temporarily knocked Nader off the ballot.

The ruling was a victory for Nader's efforts to qualify for ballots across the country, an effort that has had mixed results. It also could have implications for the presidential race in Wisconsin, one of about a dozen states that could decide the election.

Some Democrats still blame Nader's 2000 candidacy for helping President Bush win and fear he could siphon votes away from Democrat John Kerry.

A poll of likely Wisconsin voters released Thursday found 6 percent of respondents supported Nader, many of them people who would otherwise lean toward Kerry. The Republican Party of Wisconsin filed a brief Wednesday urging the Supreme Court to put him back on the ballot.

Democratic attorney Lester Pines said the party had no options to appeal the decision. He was disappointed the court took the case in the first place because of the unusual process Nader used to challenge the decision knocking him off the ballot. He also hoped it would not set a precedent for candidates in similar situations.

"People who run for office ought to pay close attention to their nomination papers and not draw from this that they're going to get a break every time they make a mistake because they're not," Pines said.

The court's decision clears the way for county clerks to begin printing ballots, setting off a frantic race to meet deadlines looming this weekend. County clerks have until Saturday to get the ballots to municipal clerks, who have to have absentee ballots in the mail by Monday. The court challenge delayed printing, which had been expected to begin as early as Tuesday.

The Supreme Court noted the need for expediency in moving unusually fast to hear Nader's appeal. The appeal was filed Tuesday, and the Supreme Court heard oral arguments Thursday morning.

At the heart of the two-hour hearing were two issues. One was how the court should handle the emergency appeal, since Nader did not follow the usual protocol. The other was whether he had met enough of the requirements for an independent candidate to get on the ballot.

Wisconsin law requires independents to gather at least 2,000 signatures and list 10 electors on their nomination papers. The statute says the electors, who cast ballots in the electoral college, shall include one from each congressional district and two at-large.

Nader listed the 10 electors, but one listed as living in one congressional district lived in another.

The Democratic Party first asked the state Elections Board to kick Nader off the ballot on those grounds, but it refused.

The party then filed suit in Dane County, and Circuit Judge Michael Nowakowski ordered Nader off the ballot.

The Supreme Court reversed that decision, ruling the residency requirement for congressional district electors is not mandatory. Thus, it ruled the Elections Board properly exercised its authority when it overlooked the mistake last week and ruled that Nader should be on the ballot.