No Automatic Ballot Placement for Third Parties in Pennsylvania

The Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania and other minor and independent political party candidates aren’t entitled to automatic ballot placement for the November 2020 general election because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Third Circuit said Tuesday.

The political parties and their candidates have had ample time to meet Pennsylvania’s signature requirements, which were already reduced by 90% based on an order in another case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit said in a per curiam opinion.

The Aug. 3 deadline to meet the state’s signature threshold isn’t a severe burden on the First or Fourteenth Amendment rights ...