Opinion ID: 2397006
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Objectors' Challenges

Text: Objectors contend that, pursuant to Section 951(e) of the Election Code, [3] the Candidates are further disqualified from appearing on the Ballot because they were placed on the Michigan general election ballot as the nominated Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates of the Reform Party of Michigan. [4] The Registrar of Voters in the County of Sacramento certified that on April 27, 2004, Camejo was registered in Sacramento to County as a member of the Green Party and that he registered with that party on July 29, 2003. The Objectors contend that because of this, his nomination in Pennsylvania violates Section 951.1 of the Election Code, 25 P.S. § 2911.1, which requires that Pennsylvania independent candidates disaffiliate from a political party in Pennsylvania thirty days before the primary election. [5] The Objectors contend that Camejo's Affidavit dated July 28, 2004, which claimed that he was not an enrolled member of a political party, constituted a false representation, because Camejo was, at that time, an enrolled and registered member of the Green Party in California.
On August 9, 2004, the Objectors filed a Petition that challenged approximately 34,000-35,000 of the signatures, alleging, inter alia, that the Nomination Papers contained numerous defective or illegible signatures, as well as those of unregistered voters and fictitious persons. [6] Further, the Objectors contested the supporting Affidavits of those who circulated the Nomination Papers The Nomination Papers consisted of 1,189 separate documents, accompanied by the Candidates' Affidavits. Petition at ¶ 4. The Objectors received the Candidates' Nomination Papers on August 3, 2004, and by August 9, 2004, had to complete their review of the signatures. They produced several volumes, documenting each signature that they were challenging and explaining the basis for the challenges. Transcript at 105. Objectors worked round-the-clock, cancelled vacations, and brought in volunteers. Id. Because of the alleged deficiencies, the Objectors argue that the Nomination Papers did not contain the required 25,697 valid signatures, and that the Candidates are not qualified to appear on the ballot. In addition to the signatures challenged by the Objectors, the Secretary of the Commonwealth, although accepting the Nomination Papers, rejected 4,936 signatures submitted by the Candidates for a variety of reasons.