A federal judge has reduced the number of signatures needed for Libertarians and other third-party candidates to get on the ballot for the U.S House and other elections in Georgia.
The ruling comes after no third-party House candidate in Georgia has ever collected enough signatures to appear on the ballot under a 1943 state law that required a petition signed by at least 5% of registered voters.
U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May on Friday ordered Georgia to lower its signature requirement to 1% of registered voters for third-party candidates running for nonstatewide offices, the same percentage of signatures needed for statewide candidates.
Candidates nominated by the Republican and Democratic parties automatically appear on the ballot.
“The court determined that this remedy would alleviate the unconstitutional burden imposed upon plaintiffs, while safeguarding the state’s interest in preventing ballot crowding and frivolous candidacies,” May wrote.
Under May’s order, third-party candidates will need to submit 4,600 to 6,500 valid signatures — depending on the number of registered voters in the district — to run for Congress. That’s a decrease from more than 23,000 signatures previously required.
May had previously ruled in March that Georgia’s third-party signature requirements were “overbroad” and violated the First and 14th amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
Her order on Friday permanently enjoined Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger from enforcing the state’s 5% signature requirement until the General Assembly enacts a permanent measure.
Attorneys for the state have said in court documents that they might appeal in advance of the 2022 election cycle.
