Independent Bob Krist Fights Back Against One of the Worst Ballot Access Laws in America

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Free Wheel MediaFree Wheel Media
Published: 06 Feb, 2018
2 min read

Welcome to one of our weekly posts, Independent Action, where we let you know the important moves independent candidates and organizations made over the past week. This week we will be discussing Greg Orman, State Senator Bob Krist, and the Unrig the System Summit hosted by Represent.Us.

Greg Orman was not quiet this week, but the light around him did dim slightly. However, Orman still managed to make some headlines during a somewhat slow week for his campaign. Governor Brownback’s resignation became official and leaves the door wide open for the Orman team to make some serious moves in the months ahead.

Orman’s statements on Governor Brownback’s resignation are below.

“Governor Brownback’s tax experiment was a big mistake, but his biggest mistake was when all the evidence suggested it wasn’t working not changing course.

My background is in the private sector. I’ve built companies for a living. Private sector companies that ignore inconvenient facts go out of business. As governor, I will bring that same perspective to Topeka to ensure innovation and the best ideas drive our agenda.”

Orman looks to build off the back of this resignation. If you would like more information on his campaign, click here.

State Senator Bob Kristgubernatorial candidate for Nebraska, “announced this week he is challenging the constitutionality of a law that makes Nebraska the most difficult state in the nation for Independent candidates to get elected.”

Krist is not fighting a small battle here. Nebraska’s law states that in order for nonpartisan candidates to participate in statewide elections they must receive signatures from ten percent of all registered voters; which equates to around 120,000 signatures. In the past, nonpartisan candidates needed only 4,000 signatures until Krist’s opponent, incumbent Republican Governor Pete Ricketts, signed of a bill substantially increasing the requirement.

Krist hired attorney Dave Domina to handle this crucial legal dispute. Domina said he will file the lawsuit in U.S. District Court, stating “the statutes place undue burdens and restrictions on ballot access for Independent candidates for public office who are not registered members of a political party.”

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We will keep you up to date on any new developments throughout this process.

To find out more about Senator Krist’s gubernatorial campaign, follow the link here.

Read the lawsuit here:

Represent.Us’ Unrig the System Summit kicked off and completed this weekend in New Orleans. The event sold out venues, and many high-profile speakers discussed the issues that plague our government. To access videos, opinions, and recaps of the event, visit IVN and/or Represent.Us’ Facebook page.

Ones to Watch For:

Nick Thomas, running for Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District.

Roger Barone, running for Congress in Texas’ 3rd district as an Independent.

Marcia Squire, Independent candidate for U.S. Senate from Michigan.

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© 2018 Free Wheel Media. This article originally published on FreeWheelUs, and has been republished in its entirety with permission and by request of Free Wheel Media. It has been modified slightly for publication on IVN.

Image: Nebraska independent candidate Bob Krist (top left), Unrig the System logo (middle), and Kansas independent candidate Greg Orman (bottom right)

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