NEWS RELEASE
April 13, 2004
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For immediate release
GRANGE APPLAUDS COURT’S
REJECTION OF POLITICAL PARTY DEMANDS
The Washington State Grange
commended Federal District Court Judge Burgess’s decision today not to give
political parties the control over the primary election process they had
requested as a result of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision ruling the
blanket primary unconstitutional.
“Judge Burgess rejected the
absurd demands of the political parties, and we see this as a victory for the
people of the State of
The political parties has asked for several key injunctions which would’ve
given them substantially more control over the process. These included the
ability of the parties to obtain lists of who voted for them, the inability of
candidates to run for election under a party’s label without that party’s
permission, and restrictions limiting the voters to choosing from among the
candidates of only one party.
The ruling today, in
accordance with the Ninth Circuit Court’s decision, prohibits the state from
conducting a “straight blanket primary,” because “the blanket primary prevents
a party from picking its nominees.”
“This is great news for our
initiative,” said Hunt. “Judge Burgess defined why the blanket primary was
unconstitutional, and our initiative satisfies the constitutional requirements.”
The Grange is collecting
signatures for Initiative 872 – the “People’s
Choice” initiative – which will implement a top-two qualifying primary in which
candidates are not nominated by the parties, but rather they qualify for the
general election regardless of party.
“This means we can continue
to move forward with our campaign of preserving the rights of the voters,” said
Hunt, “and we can remain confident that we’re on the winning side of history.”
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For more information, contact David Burr, Communications Director, (360) 943-9911.