Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein, who fell short in a petition drive as a third-party candidate, may be on Georgia's presidential ballot after all — as a write-in candidate.
Party officials are expected to seek write-in status after the state notified them last week that the party had too few verified signatures on its petition to have her included as a third-party candidate. The state’s deadline for write-in candidates to file notice is Sept. 6.
The effort comes after the Georgia Secretary of State's Office said last week that local election officials were able to verify only 5,925 signatures on the party's petition. The state's minimum is 7,500, as set by a federal judge earlier this year.
The party has left open the possibility it could also appeal the state’s decision regarding its petition, although faced a deadline by end of Tuesday to file it.
Nationally, Stein has been confirmed for the ballot in 31 states and the District of Columbia, and she is awaiting confirmation a half-dozen others. Other states have pending deadlines where the party said it expects to file for ballot access, and she’ll be a write-in candidate in Indiana and North Carolina.
Georgia's presidential ballot already includes six candidates, including Republican nominee Donald Trump, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson. Additionally, three write-in candidates have already given notice to be on the ballot: Cherunda Fox of Detroit; Robert Buchanan of Virginia; and someone named Sandra Wilson.
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