PRESS RELEASE from Bernhoft Law via
PRNewswire
U.S. Supreme Court
Rejects Attempt To Overturn Nader Ballot Access Case
LOS ANGELES, March 9
/PRNewswire/ -- In a significant move for open-election laws, the U.S.
Supreme Court today rejected an attempt to overturn a federal Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals' decision that the state of Arizona
could not require independent presidential candidates to register
earlier than candidates affiliated with major political parties.
Arizona's petition for certiorari to the Supreme Court had
been closely watched after 13 other states supported Arizona's bid to
have the High Court hear the case. The federal civil rights case,
originally filed in Arizona federal district
court, stems from Nader's 2004 presidency bid.
Ralph Nader had challenged the deadline, contending
it violated his First Amendment rights to free speech and political
association. Lead Attorney Robert Barnes of the
Bernhoft Law Firm represented Nader before the Ninth Circuit, which
overturned the district court and unanimously declared the Arizona
law unconstitutional. Nader's Bernhoft Law legal team successfully
argued that requiring independent candidates to register by June was
unfair when the two major political parties did not hold their
conventions until the fall.
"By letting that decision stand, the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed
that American democracy hinges on giving people a voice and a choice,"
says Robert Bernhoft, founding partner of Bernhoft
Law. "Today's decision is not only a victory for Ralph Nader,
but a seminal victory for all who care about free speech, free and open
elections, and a more participatory democracy."
In addition to the earlier deadline for independent candidates, the Arizona
law also required that petition circulators be registered to vote in
the state. "What makes this case unusually significant is that it
involved two distinct, important issues, and liberalized ballot access
prevailed on both," says Richard Winger, editor of
the influential Ballot Access News. Winger also noted that this
development could have "immediate repercussions," since ballot access
cases are currently pending in 15 other states.
Bernhoft Law has offices in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
and Los Angeles, California.