Michigan Third Parties Coalition


Member Parties	Michigan Third Parties Launch Campaign to Lower State’s Ballot Access Requirements FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 14th 2008 LANSING, MI – The Michigan Third Parties Coalition, representing the state’s Green, Libertarian, Reform, Socialist, and U.S. Taxpayers Parties, as well as independent voters throughout the State of Michigan, is launching a statewide campaign to pressure State legislators to lower Michigan’s requirements for political parties to gain ballot access in the State to no more than 5,000 signatures. Under current Michigan election law, a political party can only gain ballot access in Michigan if it turns in 38,013 valid signatures with a 180 day period; an impossible task, the Coalition argues, without tens of thousands of dollars to hire paid petitioners. This criterion must be met for a Michigan political party to nominate even a single candidate for public office, whether federal, state, or local. With such restrictive barriers to participation, even Republican Presidential frontrunner John McCain’s own Reform Institute gave Michigan a grade of F on its ballot-access scorecard and urged state lawmakers to make remedial action on ballot-access a priority. “For all practical purposes, ballot lines, in the State of Michigan, are a commodity for sale,” said Socialist Party of Michigan Chair Matt Erard. “The extraordinarily excessive ballot access requirements in Michigan only serve to measure a party’s financial resources – not its voter appeal.” The requirements for parties to retain and qualify for ballot access are determined by the number of votes cast for Secretary of State and Governor respectively. But Coalition members argue that such logic is faulty as the higher voter participation, the harder it is to get on the ballot. “Increased voter participation at the polls should not coincide with voters having fewer options the next time they come to cast their ballots said Green Party of Michigan Chair Fred Vitale. “If anything, it should be the reverse.” The Coalition’s website cites Richard Winger, the nation’s foremost expert on ballot access who notes that historically, even the slightest ballot access barriers have been sufficient for preventing cluttered ballots. The Coalition’s website argues that, “any ballot access barrier beyond 5,000 valid signatures is certain to go beyond excess in its attempt to fulfill this purpose and restrict the right of voters to vote for serous candidates with widespread support.” U.S. Taxpayers Party of Michigan Chair Jerry Van Sickle argued that, “Michigan’s restrictive ballot access requirements are one of many measures enacted by the State’s Democratic and Republican parties to limit challengers from opponents.” “If candidates of the Democratic or Republican parties had to go through the same hurdles to get on the ballot as the candidates of new minor parties or independents, they would often be unable to qualify” said Reform Party of Michigan Chair Matt Crehan. Coalition members hope that this campaign and the wider Voters’ Bill of Rights initiative it drafted last month will help to curb such discriminatory requirements and ensure free and fair elections. “Recent actions, and lack of action, by our state legislature has shown the public that we may not have the best and brightest representing us in Lansing,” says Libertarian chair Bill Hall. “That is the unfortunate result of having a very small pool of potential candidates to draw from, as independents and lesser parties are excluded from the process”. The Coalition is organizing a letter-writing and lobbying effort to ensure that State legislators are aware of the issue. Members intend to meet with House Ethics and Elections Committee Chair Marc Corriveau (D-Northville) in the coming week and to testify before the Committee soon after. The Coalition is also seeking endorsements for the campaign from other Michigan organizations. Sample letters to State legislators are available on the Coalition’s website at: http://www.mithirdparties.org. CONTACT: Michigan Third Party Coalition (MTPC): michiganthirdparties@yahoo.com Green – Fred Vitale, chair, 313-885-3518 Libertarian - Bill Hall, chair, 616 460-9516, or Will Tyler White, executive committee, 517 349-3806 Reform - Matt Crehan, chair, 231 755-5252 Socialist - Matt Erard, chair, 248 765-1605 U.S. Taxpayers - Jerry Van Sickle, chair, 231 848-7257 Michigan Third Parties Coalition Public Forum January 13th 2008 in Lansing Join representatives from all of the Michigan Third Parties Coalition member political parties (Green, Libertarian, Reform, Socialist, and U.S. Taxpayers' Parties) at a public forum on The Voters Bill of Rights, Michigan election law, and the political issues we face in the 2008 Elections. Don't miss this great opportunity to hear a diverse range of perspectives from all of the Michigan political parties challenging the current two-party duopoloy. Come join us to discuss and debate the issues! The forum will take place from 1PM to 6PM at the Michigan Libertarian Party headquarters at 2272 E. Michigan Ave. Lansing, MI 48192. Third Parties Vow to End Primaries and Political Discrimination For Immediate Release 11/12/07 LANSING, MI - The Michigan Third Party Coalition (MTPC), representing the state’s Green, Libertarian, Reform, Socialist, and U.S. Taxpayers Parties, is throwing its support behind the lawsuit brought by Berl Schwartz of the City Pulse Newspaper and Mark Grebner of Practical Political Consultants, among others, to strike down the current primary law as unconstitutional. “The Act creates a legal duopoly — a monopoly held by two institutions, the Michigan Democratic Party and the Michigan Republican Party — and ensures the continuation of the duopoly by forbidding them from transferring full ownership (of voter lists) to any other entity,” the complaint reads. Although the majority of Michiganians are either independent or nonvoting, millions of their tax dollars help Democrat and Republican minorities choose and promote their candidates. If political power is inherently equal, then Michigan’s primary system constitutes political discrimination against independents and alternate parties, who select and promote their candidates without taxpayer funding or assistance. Tied to the primary is publicity from the media, whose coverage of the primaries leaves the impression there are only two parties with candidates. This bias continues through the general election. For example, often only 2 of 5 candidates for the same office are invited to debate. The timing problem of national primaries should be solved by federal action. The U.S. is the only major country in the world without uniform national ballot access laws. Either every state should have a primary with all parties on the same date, or none should have a primary. Parties can select candidates at their own expense by convention or caucus, as they did prior to 1912. It is time to end the arbitrary and unfair primary system. Designed and implemented by the old party machines to control the process, it is a recurring point of contention as each party tries to tweak it to their best advantage. If Michigan eliminates its primary, other states could follow and prompt a federal solution. MTPC is dedicated to a political future that lives up to our Constitution. That means either every party in the primary, or no publicly funded primary. It is an essential step towards equality for every party and all potential voters. If legislators will not act, then the public must. Michigan Third Parties Coalition Drafts Voters' Bill of Rights The Michigan Third Parties Coalition has drafted a Michigan Voters' Bill of Rights outlining concrete proposals to fix Michigan's electoral system and ensure that voters have the unequivocal right to cast a secure ballot for whichever candidates best match their preferences. While the MTPC hopes that the Voters Bill of Rights can eventually be incorporated into the Michigan Constitution, we are asking all Michigan voters and civic organizations to put the pressure on your legislators to add a much of it as possible to Michigan election law statutes in the meantime. Contact information for your State Senators and Represenatives is available on the Contact page above. If your organization would like to endorse the Michigan Voters' Bill of Rights, please email us at: michiganthirdparties@yahoo.com Why A Voters Bill of Rights is Needed Current electoral law in Michigan effectively limits political power to two parties. It says a major political party is "Each of the two political parties whose candidate for the office of secretary of state received the highest and second highest number of votes ..." (Act 116 of 1954, Sec. 16). Election laws regulate how these two parties shall participate in taxpayer-funded primaries to choose their candidates, while rules for all other parties do not include this government-subsidized selection process. This monetary benefit to the political power of only two parties constitutes Government enforced discrimination against those who are independent or members of other parties. The public is then spoon-fed pabulum from these two parties for six months while the media covers the primary as if they are the only ones on the ballot in November. And guess which two parties are allowed in the debates? These obstacles are almost impossible to overcome. Add gerrymandering and the ability of the duopoly in power to write new laws whenever threatened, and their stranglehold on power becomes lethal. Nonpartisan races show voters will elect people other than Republicans or Democrats, as they have by electing numerous independents and five Libertarian city council members in recent years, including two Mayors-pro-tem (Owosso and Hazel Park). Beyond local elections however, the burden of complying with complicated campaign finance laws and raising enormous sums of money is extremely difficult unless you are wealthy or have developed, over decades, a well-oiled party machine that knows all the loopholes in the laws. Democrats and Republicans should not have a stranglehold on power -- their existence is not written into the constitution. However, it has been written into Michigan election law by those two parties to effectively suppress any challengers. Although some scholars consider these laws unconstitutional, the increasingly politicized courts have blithely enabled and condoned them. Since the two parties in power are not inclined to voluntarily cede their control of the process, and court challenges to these biased laws are likely doomed to failure, a ballot initiative may be needed to change the Michigan Constitution. The other alternative is to reexamine the entire document at a Constitutional Convention, scheduled for the ballot in 2010. If that is the eventual scenario, it is imperative that #11 be enacted prior to delegate selection (nonpartisan election of Constitutional Convention delegates). Then, independents and alternate party members are more easily promoted and elected as delegates to the convention. Otherwise the Constitutional Convention will be a free ticket for the two parties in power to continue writing the rules in their favor. Voters Bill of Rights Election laws and regulations shall be identical for all parties. The requirement to qualify for statewide ballot access shall not exceed 5,000 valid petition signatures. Public funding of primaries shall be eliminated. No candidate shall be prohibited from participating in any public debate. Instant Runoff Voting shall be instituted statewide. Rotating ballot position shall be instituted statewide. The ability to vote without producing a picture ID shall not be denied. Same-day voter registration shall be available in every precinct. Absentee voting by choice shall be instituted statewide. Voting machines with verifiable hard-copy ballots shall be required. Candidates qualified as independents have the right to list their party affiliation on the ballot. Congressional districts shall be drawn along municipal boundaries by population by a nonpartisan commission. Delegates for a Michigan Constitutional Convention shall be selected in a nonpartisan election. The enumeration of these rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people to ensure fair, equal, open and honest elections. Click here to Read The Full Language of the Michigan Voters Bill of Rights Michigan Third Parties Coalition Formed FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact Matt Erard at 248-765-1605 or mserard (at) gmail.com LANSING, MI – Five of Michigan’s political parties have joined together to establish the Michigan Third Parties Coalition (MTPC). Saturday afternoon, representatives of the Green, US Taxpayers, Reform, Socialist, and Libertarian Parties met at Finley's American Grill, and united to challenge election laws that unfairly favor Democrats and Republicans. Spanning the political spectrum, theMichigan Third Parties Coalition formed to advocate equal rights, in Michigan elections, for all Political Parties. The MTPC contends that the present “two-party” system is not simply a product of voter’s choices or ideals. Rather, members say, it is an institutional arrangement maintained by major parties and special interests to prevent competition. “Unless you are a Republican or a Democrat, Michigan's elections are neither free, nor fair. Michigan's other political parties hope to change that, by working together to make it easier for all Michigan voters to vote for the candidate they choose" said Libertarian Party of Michigan Chair Bill Hall. Michigan third party candidates say they face a media blackout. “This lie of omission is perpetrated through circular logic: We're shut out of the debates, nominally because of low polling numbers, then shut out of the polls because we weren't in the debates, then shut out of the next debate because of low poll numbers . . . It's difficult enough for voters to make intelligent decisions when you hear from all sides, let alone only two. Michigan's citizens deserve better...'" said Douglas Campbell of the Green Party, who was arrested, beaten and jailed for attempting to participate in a candidates' debate. Socialist Party of Michigan Chair Matt Erard further argued that, "Living in a democratic society means that voters have a right to make informed decisions. Voters are robbed of that right when third parties are excluded from the coverage and opportunities necessary to equally present their views to the voting public." Jon Ettinger of the Reform Party said, “Of all of the obstacles to third parties achieving fair and equal access in the Michigan electoral system the greatest are the present state election laws which prevent many third party candidates from getting the opportunity to participate in Michigan’s electoral process, at all.“ Gerald Van Sickle of the US Taxpayers Party points out that, “Under the present Michigan election law, it is impossible for a new party to nominate any candidates for the ballot without spending tens of thousands of dollars on a statewide ballot access drive; an often impossible task without the corporate financial backing (which the two major parties receive as ‘access contributions.’ )” In each election, third parties with ballot access, face the prospect of losing their ballot access. Furthermore, the present voting system, which depends on primaries, compels people to vote for one of the major party candidates rather than their first choice, or else “waste” their vote. While the member parties have diverse, and divergent, political perspectives, they have agreed on these core objectives: Amending Michigan’s ballot access laws to give all state parties a chance to have their candidates listed on the ballot Allowing candidates affiliated with non-ballot qualified third parties to list a party label on the ballot once they’ have qualified to appear on the ballot as independents. Michigan is among a minority of states that does not allow this. Establishing Instant Run-Off Voting (IRV) in Michigan elections. IRV is a system that would allow voters to rank their preferences and drop the least popular candidates until one candidate has a majority. In addition to being a far more democratic system of voting than the “winner-take- all” system currently in place, IRV could replace primaries, and would eliminate the spoiler effect of voting for third party candidates. Coverage of all candidates by the media. We jointly advocate the importance of including third party candidates in the media and raising the issue to the media and general public whenever third party candidates are systematically ignored in election coverage. Fighting the exclusion of third party candidates from debates. The MTPC developed a website at: www.michiganthirdpartiescoalition.org and are organizing a series of events and campaigns.

© 2008 by the Michigan Third Party Coalition.