File:Indiana Green Party Testimony opposing Further Restricting of Ballot Access.webm

English: Jan 25, 2021 - Indiana Statehouse

Dr. George Wolfe on behalf of the Indiana Green Party Testimony Opposing House Bill 1134 - Further Restricting Ballot Access

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Indiana Law currently requires 3rd parties and independents petition for upward of 46,000 hand-written signatures of registered Indiana voters to be on the ballot for a statewide position (electronic signatures not allowed).

The Indiana Green Party (INGP) was in support the original version of this bill as it would level the playing field for any and all potential candidates to appear on the ballot, requiring 4500 petition signatures regardless of a candidate's political party affiliation. HOWEVER, this bill was amended just before leaving the House Committee on Elections and Apportionment to specifically EXCLUDE 3rd parties and independents, meaning the INGP would still have to petition for nearly 10 times the amount of signatures required by other parties just to be on the ballot

This bill also requires 3rd parties who have qualified for ballot access submit all of their candidacy forms for Governor/President by the end of January of an election year instead of mid-July, even though these 3rd parties are *still* not allowed to participate in the public Primary Elections in the Spring.

With this amendment in place, it's clear the main point of this bill was not to level the playing field for potential candidates to appear on ballots, but rather to further restrict minor parties (i.e. Libertarians, and likely Greens in years to come) who previously qualified for ballot access and were able to nominate their statewide candidates at their conventions.

We see this as yet another example of blatant election injustice in which lawmakers continue to write election laws in their own favor.

Indiana Green Party member, Dr. George Wolfe, testified on behalf of the Indiana Green Party to the House Elections Committee before their vote. Watch Dr. Wolfe's testimony now or on the in.gov website by selecting "Monday, Jan. 25 - 3:30pm" from the "Meetings" drop down, then navigating to 15:30 in the video.

House Bill 1134 - http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2021/bills/house/1134 Full Committee Video, Jan 25, 2021 - https://iga.in.gov/information/archives/2021/video/committee_elections_and_apportionment_0500/ Stay up to date with INGP Ballot Access - https://www.greenpartyin.com/latest-news/ballot-access/

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UPDATE: Due to public demand and strong pressure from 3rd parties, HB 1134 was pulled from the calendar on February 1 and appears dead. However, we must remain vigilant. We will continue to monitor the legislature to make sure this bill doesn’t get revived or added to another elections bill.