Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has sued Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows after election officers barred the unbiased presidential candidate from accumulating poll entry signatures inside polling locations through the March 5 presidential main.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court docket in Bangor, Maine Wednesday, slams Bellows as a “Democrat partisan hack” who’s “disinterested in the rule of law, basic constitutional protections, in favor of peacocking around as the lap dog of an incompetent, desperate, senile president.”
“(The president’s) political team has apparently issued (Bellows) instructions from the White House to clear Maine’s 2024 general election ballot from any opposition that might threaten to deprive Joe Biden of Maine’s four electoral college votes – Constitution be damned,” the lawsuit stated.
Independent and third-party candidates are required to gather 4,000 signatures from registered voters by the beginning of August with a purpose to have their title positioned on Maine’s 2024 common election poll.
The candidates can solely submit 5,000 for overview to election officers and Kennedy argued his marketing campaign wants to gather as many signatures as doable to ensure 4,000 of the 5,000 move muster.
Lawyers for Kennedy stated city clerks had beforehand informed the marketing campaign they might be allowed to gather signatures inside polling locations on March 5, a call the candidate alleged was reversed earlier this month “as it somehow threatened (without explanation, as to how) to unduly influence the voters.”
“It is beyond the laugh test to argue that the collection of ballot access petition signatures for independent and third-party presidential electors can in any way be properly interpreted as either influencing or attempting to influence the casting of votes for delegates to the national political party nominating conventions,” the lawsuit stated.
But Bellows stated Maine regulation is “very clear” that inside a voting place itself, an individual can’t affect one other particular person’s determination concerning a candidate for workplace or a query that’s on the poll for election that day.
That is why no presidential marketing campaign can gather signatures on presidential main day, Bellows stated. But if a candidate’s workplace shouldn’t be on the poll, they “can absolutely collect signatures,” she stated.
“There’s a statewide election in June. Certainly Mr. Kennedy can collect signatures then. It’s important to recognize that it’s when a candidate’s office is on the ballot, that they cannot collect signatures because for good reason, Maine law prohibits political activities that influence a voter,” Bellows stated in an announcement.
Kennedy’s marketing campaign attorneys argued he must be allowed to gather signatures inside polling locations as a result of his title won’t seem on the Republican or Democratic main ballots. He requested a federal decide to reverse Bellows’ determination and declare it unconstitutional.
The lawsuit stated Bellows allowed Republican and Democratic presidential candidates to gather poll entry signatures inside polling areas through the November 2023 statewide election, a contest that didn’t function presidential candidates on the poll.
Representatives of Democratic presidential candidate Dean Phillips and Republican candidates Doug Burgum, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Ryan Binkley had been allowed to gather signatures inside polling areas through the November 2023 common election, the lawsuit stated.
Maine, Kennedy’s attorneys argued, “has historically permitted” potential candidates to gather signatures inside polling areas on tables offered by the state “as a matter of course during both the primary and general election.”
“In 2020, the Green Party presidential candidate was permitted to collect petition signatures inside polling locations on primary election day 2020, for their presidential candidate, on tables provided by the state, and reports collecting about 9,000 signatures on that single day,” Kennedy’s attorneys stated within the lawsuit.
Lawyers for Kennedy’s marketing campaign argued the candidate’s crew must also be allowed to gather poll entry signatures inside polling areas through the March 5 main “because everyone exiting polling locations during a primary election are registered voters qualified to sign (Kennedy Jr.’s) ballot access petition.”
Kennedy’s attorneys stated his marketing campaign stands to save lots of about $22,500 if they’re allowed to gather signatures inside polling locations on presidential main day in March as a result of skilled signature gathers cost about half as a lot.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”