Nancy Allen is Co-Chair of the Green Council. Yet the overwhelming majority of states set their retention requirements for parties so that new and minor parties can have some time to get established. In 30 states at least one minor party has been qualified for 4 years, and in 39 states plus DC some minor party has remained qualified for four years without having to requalify, during the last thirty years.
Maine law needs to be changed.
When the Maine Supreme Judicial Court decided August 1 that the Maine Green Party should be disqualified as a political party it was, they said, because the Maine Legislature had twice failed to act to eliminate a biennial ballot requirement for legitimate party standing that includes a presendential candidate. Maine helped make that happen. This bill, which would have opened up our democracy to other parties and processes died a strange and suspicious death in the Legislature this session. The bill, crafted originally by the Green Party, Rep. Perkins and Rep. Gerry in 1994, and improved and supported by the Secretary of State's office and the League of Women Voters, was a three year project that received input from many individuals and organizations. It was nearly unanimously supported by editors of Maine's daily newspapers.