It was simply out of “convenience” that the Libertarian Party of Iowa (LPIA) selected their convention delegates — who would later nominate three candidates for U.S. Congress — in an unorthodox manner, said party chairwoman Jules Cutler.
Unfortunately for the LPIA, it was an extralegal process, one that resulted in the three congressional candidates being thrown off the November general election ballot after an objection was raised by multiple Republicans.
The error that validated the Republicans’ objection to the three candidates was the party’s decision to hold its county conventions on the same night as its precinct caucuses. The two separate events are prescribed by state law for political parties’ general election year processes in Iowa.
State law requires that a political party’s county conventions — the event at which the party’s district and state convention delegates are certified — must be held no sooner than the day after their precinct caucuses.
“As embarrassing as it is, we did not know,” said Cutler, an attorney in Des Moines.
Republicans and Democrats typically leave about a month between their precinct caucuses and their county conventions.
No Libertarians filed petitions in the spring seeking the nomination via the June primary election in any of Iowa’s four congressional districts. A February 2021 law passed by Republicans raised the number of petition signatures from eligible voters necessary to qualify for the primary ballot from 375 to 1726, including a minimum 47 signatures from voters in each of at least half the counties in the district.
Libertarian candidates Nicholas Gluba and Marco Battaglia, respectively of the 1st and 3rd Congressional Districts, confirmed that the higher threshold for petition signatures played no role in the reason they didn’t file earlier for the June primary ballot. Candidate Charles Aldrich of the 4th District said he would have sought primary ballot access had the signature threshold not been raised.
If no candidate is nominated via the June primary ballot, state law allows a party to nominate a candidate by convention, using the same delegates certified at the earlier county conventions.
The party’s error of holding their county conventions earlier than legally allowed had not gone unnoticed. Republicans objected to the candidates’ names on the ballots last month, essentially claiming that the nominating convention delegates were ineligible. The State Objection Panel concurred, and the three candidates were booted from the ballot.
“We were being watched, because Republicans view us as a threat,” said Cutler.
That may be true. Though unlikely to win, Libertarian candidates could act as “spoilers” by siphoning votes from incumbents or major challengers. In the 3rd District, GOP wins and losses since 2018 have correlated with the presence — or absence — of a Libertarian on the ballot.
The LPIA took its case to keep their candidates on the ballot all the way to the Iowa Supreme Court, which affirmed last Wednesday that the candidates cannot appear on the ballot due to the party’s convention timing error.
It’s an unfortunate blow to a well-meaning, resource-strapped group that their candidates won’t be on the ballot due to a legal technicality. But technicalities are a regular occurrence in our systems of justice, law and politics. And yes, their consequences can be significant.
In Michigan, for example, former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr requested to withdraw from the state’s general election ballot, to which he had been nominated by a minor political party. His request was refused by Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat. Benson told Kennedy that “Michigan Election Law does not permit minor party candidates to withdraw.”
The Michigan law Benson cited applied only to candidates for Congress or the State Legislature. Kennedy sued, seeking a writ of mandamus, or a court order that compels a government official to perform a certain duty.
Like that of Iowa Libertarians, Kennedy’s case went to the state’s highest court. Indeed, the law cited by Benson did not apply to Kennedy. But the Michigan Supreme Court nevertheless denied Kennedy’s request for a writ of mandamus, ruling that Kennedy did not meet the elements legally necessary for it to granted. Without the writ, Kennedy cannot legally force Benson to remove him from the ballot. His name will remain on it.
Kennedy said that he suspended his campaign after internal polling suggested that his candidacy could siphon enough votes in swing states that would have otherwise gone to Donald Trump, giving an edge to Kamala Harris. In other words, his presence on the ballot could impact the determination of who wins Michigan’s 15 electoral votes — and even the election itself.
It’s not for this column to opine whether Benson, a high-ranking Democrat in Michigan, is politically motivated in refusing to remove Kennedy from her state’s ballot; nor to ponder if Michigan’s election law was written with political motivations to disenfranchise voters and candidates alike.
But if Kennedy’s presence on the ballot does threaten Trump’s chances, no Democrat in Michigan — elected official, bureaucrat or civilian — is going to cry foul.
Nor should they be expected to. Campaigns are about winning. To win, one often must use whatever tools are available. And if the opportunity to bounce an opponent from the ballot presents itself, any candidate or party intent on winning would be foolish not to proceed.
If Libertarians spotted a disqualifying error by a Republican or Democrat candidate, would they move to strike their name from the ballot to bolster their own chances? According to Cutler, no. That reflects decency, but it does not a desire to win.
There is one reason that no Libertarians are in Congress: Libertarians don’t win.
Multiple notable challenges to candidates on Iowa ballots have occurred in the last several years, including some fairly controversial ones.
In 2018, gubernatorial candidate Ron Corbett, the former mayor of Cedar Rapids, was blocked from the GOP primary ballot after it was determined upon a challenge that his petition was eight signatures short. Corbett took the matter to District Court, which ruled that his campaign could not re-add otherwise valid signatures it had inadvertently crossed out — a technicality for sure.
Corbett did not challenge the District Court’s ruling and instead worked to return hundreds of thousands in remaining campaign funds to donors.
In 2021, the nominating petition of Geralyn Jones, candidate for the Linn-Mar school board, was challenged by Bret Nilles of Marion. Jones is the leader of the Linn County chapter of Moms for Liberty, a conservative parental rights-focused group. Nilles chairs the Linn County Democrats.
Nilles objected to Jones’ nomination petition based on numerous instances of individual signatures “made by the same individual on multiple occasions.” During the objection hearing, Jones admitted to allowing wives from multiple households to sign on behalf of their husbands, a violation of Iowa law that prompted Linn County Auditor Joel Miller to refer the matter to the Linn County Sheriff for investigation.
Despite Jones’ admission of illegitimate signatures, the district’s Election Objection Board allowed her to remain on the ballot. Nilles was displeased but did not take the matter to court. Jones’ bid for school board was unsuccessful.
Last month, Jones sought nomination by convention to be the GOP candidate for Iowa House District 73. She was challenged at the convention by Jim Conklin, the former chair of the Linn County Republicans.
Conklin received more votes than Jones and was declared the winner of the nomination by a state GOP staffer, but an audit by the state party the next day determined that Jones had won by a “weighted vote” process prescribed in the state party constitution that had not been utilized during the convention.
Despite the party’s determination that Jones was the rightful nominee, Justin Wasson, a GOP state committee member who chaired the nominating convention, refused to certify results declaring Jones the nominee. An affidavit declaring Conklin had already been signed, and Wasson told The Gazette that he was doubtful that it could be “arbitrarily” changed outside of the convention. No objections to the vote favoring Conklin or the method of voting itself had been raised before the convention adjourned and the affidavit bearing Conkin’s name was signed.
Republican Party of Iowa paperwork listing Jones as the candidate was rejected by the Iowa Secretary of State’s office due to the absence of Wasson’s signature. The office told The Gazette it never received paperwork certifying Conklin as the nominee. As a result, no Republican candidate will appear on the ballot for House District 73, an omission met with no protest from either Democrats or Libertarians — or your friendly (Republican) opinion columnist.
Cutler said that the three Libertarians kicked off the ballot will continue their candidacies via write-in campaigns. The party of (truly) limited government is determined to see this election through to the end.
The saga is a sad one, but it’s not unreasonable to expect that those who seek to our laws be expected to also follow them — without missteps. Holding lawmakers accountable to following laws is one thing to which no one will object.
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