[EM] Write-in Candidate Rules

[Jonathan Lundell]

On Dec 27, 2008, at 4:19 AM, James Gilmour wrote:

> Jonathan Lundell  > Sent: Saturday, December 27, 2008 1:50 AM
>> In California, I see a couple of significant differences. There's no
>> filing fee (or signatures in lieu of fee) for a write-in candidate,
>> and a  write-in candidate can bypass the party primary.
>
> No filing fee - OK, but the statement about signatures puzzles me.
> In the "Summary of Qualifications and Requirements for Write-In  
> Candidates" to which you provided a link, it says:
>
> D. Nomination Papers
> 1. The required number of signers to a write-in candidate’s  
> nomination paper for the respective offices are as follows:
> a. United State Senator: 65-100
> b. Member of House of Representatives, State Legislative Office: Not  
> less than 40 nor more than 60.
>
> So there would appear to be a requirement for a very modest number  
> of signatures.  Or have I misunderstood something?

No, this requirement is identical, and modest. However, the filing fee  
and its "signatures in lieu" are an independent requirement. From the  
requirements for the office of House of Reps:

> A. FILING FEE
>
> Full Payment of Filing Fee
> Pay a filing fee equal to 1% of the first year's salary.  Currently,  
> the filing fee for United
> States Representative in Congress is $1,652.00. The filing fee must  
> be paid at the time
> the candidate obtains the nomination forms from the county elections  
> official and is non-
> refundable.
>
> Signatures In Lieu of Filing Fee
> A candidate may choose to submit by February 21, 2008 (E-103), a  
> minimum of 3,000
> valid signatures on in-lieu-filing-fee petitions.
>
> The 3,000 in-lieu signature requirement applies only to candidates  
> seeking the
> nomination of the Democratic or Republican parties.  Candidates  
> seeking the nomination
> of the American Independent, Green, Libertarian, or Peace and  
> Freedom parties may
> submit petitions containing signatures of 10% of the registered  
> voters in the district in
> which the candidate seeks nomination, or 150 signatures, whichever  
> is fewer.


The really big numbers show up in statewide elections. This is for an  
independent (non-party-associated) presidential ballot line:

> The nomination papers must be signed by at least 158,372 registered  
> voters (equivalent to
> 1% of the statewide registration from the November 2006 General  
> Election).