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Judge Upholds Ballot Access Restrictions

Libertarian Party of North Carolina
PO Box 28141 Raleigh NC 27611
Contact: Brian Irving
Cell: 910.987.5844

RALEIGH (05/28/2008) -- A Superior Court judge ruled May 27 that "there is no fundamental right for a voter to vote for the party of their choice" and threw out the state Libertarian Party's challenge to North Carolina's elections laws.

Judge Robert Hobgood ruled in the lawsuit filed by the Libertarian and Green parties challenging the legality of the State's elections laws under the North Carolina Constitution.

"We're deeply saddened by this ruling," said Barbara Howe, LPNC chair. "Not only did the judge support the State's power to take away our right to choose who represents us, he also upheld the State's assertion that North Carolina voters are not smart enough to fill out a so-called long ballot."

"This is a very sad day for representative government," she said.

The judge agreed with the State's argument that the number of elected offices that may appear on the ballot in Presidential election years, along with the use of optical scanning equipment, can cause "voter confusion."

"The more parties there are that are recognized by the State and that place candidates on the ballot, the greater the chance there is for ballots that are so long as to be unwieldy and to risk voter confusion and frustration of the electoral process," Judge Hobgood wrote.

"In effect, the State says North Carolina voters are not as smart as Iraqis, who had more than 100 parties to choose from in their elections," Howe said .

"Whether we appeal or not, the Libertarian Party is not going away. We will continue to fight for our rights and the rights of all North Carolinians," Howe concluded.

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