The Nevada Green Party (NGP) is seeking intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court to ensure that its candidates remain on the state ballot for the upcoming Nov. 5 election. This move comes after the Nevada Supreme Court overturned a lower court decision that had initially allowed Green Party candidates to be included on the ballot.
The Nevada Supreme Court’s ruling on Sept. 6 stated that the Green Party candidates were ineligible for the ballot because they had used the wrong form to collect signatures for ballot access. The Nevada State Democratic Party had challenged the signatures, arguing that the form used was intended for initiatives and referendums, not for minor parties seeking ballot access.
The Green Party contended that denying them ballot access would violate their federal due process and equal protection rights under the U.S. Constitution. Despite a state district court initially rejecting the Democrats’ claims on state law grounds, the Nevada Supreme Court reversed this decision, citing instructions from the Nevada Secretary of State’s office that had led to the use of the incorrect form.
The NGP’s emergency application, filed by Jay Alan Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice, is currently under review by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan. The party argues that without intervention from the Supreme Court, they would suffer ongoing and irreparable harm in exercising their right to participate in the election.
Nevada is a crucial battleground state in the presidential election, and the presence of Green Party candidate Jill Stein on the ballot could potentially impact the election outcome. In both the 2020 and 2016 elections, the margin of victory in Nevada was relatively narrow, highlighting the significance of every vote in the state.
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