[LPVA Announce] Ballot Bills Died in Committee

Dear LPVA Members & Friends:

The two ballot access bills in the Virginia General Assembly that I wrote to you about earlier unfortunately died in committee.

I want to thank Delegate Sam Rasoul of Roanoke for being the Patron for HB1463, which would have granted political party status, and, with it, ballot access, to any political party that polled at least 4% of the vote for a statewide office, in either of the last two statewide elections. The percentage is currently 10%, the second highest among all states (only Alabama is worse).

Consideration of HB1463 was postponed indefinitely in the Elections Subcommittee of the House Privileges & Elections Committee on a voice vote, essentially killing the bill for this legislative session.

I want to thank Senator John Edwards, also of Roanoke, for being the Patron for SB766, which would have reduced the number of signatures for a petition for statewide office, other a petition for President of the United States, from 10,000 valid signatures to 5,000. (It is already 5,000 for President.) It would have also cut the minimum number of signatures in each of the 11 congressional districts from 400 to 200.

SB766 was postponed indefinitely by the Senate Privileges & Elections Committee on an 8-7 vote. All Republican Senators voted to postpone indefinitely; all Democratic Senators voted to not postpone consideration of the bill.

If you did so, thank you for contacting your Delegate or Senator in support of the bills. I particularly want to thank all the LPVA members who joined me in Richmond on Monday, January 19, to lobby for these bills.

We lost this battle. But, all 100 Delegate seats and all 40 Senate seats will be up for election in November 2015. Please run for the House of Delegates, Virginia Senate or one of the many other offices that will be on the ballot this Fall. We shall return to lobby the legislature next year, and we will eventually win ballot access relief in one or more ways in Virginia.

Bill Redpath
LPVA Chairman


RUN FOR OFFICE: http://Campaign.LPVA.com



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