Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is calling for state legislators to amend the state’s ballot-access laws to resolve a dispute over which Republican presidential candidates will be on the state’s primary ballot in March, but the odds are long that lawmakers will do as he wishes. Cuccinelli confirmed to The Washington Examiner Saturday that he is pushing emergency legislation that would place on the ballot the names of Republican candidates who failed to collect enough voter signatures to qualify, notably Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
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Only Mitt Romney and Ron Paul met the state’s 10,000 signature requirement initially, sparking charges of fraud from Gingrich and a lawsuit from Perry.
Cuccinelli said he was pushing for the change “to make sure that the voters of Virginia are taken care of. They’re a priority for me.”
“I don’t think that [tough standards to get on the ballot] is a good thing for Virginians. I expect that was put in there a long time ago so people can remain in control and party’s could pick winners,” he told The Examiner.
If Virginia lawmakers passed the emergency legislation on their first day back in session, Jan. 11, it could take effect before absentee ballots are mailed out Jan. 21.
But House Speaker Bill Howell, a Republican, said he doesn’t think that’s likely to happen since the bill would need to win 80 percent of the votes in the politically divided House and Senate chambers.
“I’m very skeptical that would happen,” he said Saturday. “I don’t think you’re going to find 80 percent of both bodies willing to change the law to benefit one or two people.”
Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling and a number of the Virginia legislators support Romney for president, giving them no incentive to change the ballot rules.
Bolling, who is expected to run against Cuccinelli for governor in 2013, said changing the rules now is unfair to the two candidates who played by the rules and made the ballot.
“I understand that some people are disappointed that their favorite candidate didn’t get on the election ballot but the rules were well known to everyone, and every candidate had a chance to collect the number of valid petition signatures,” Bolling told the Examiner. “You can’t change the rules in the middle of the game just because you don’t like the result. That doesn’t seem fair or legally correct to me.”
Cuccinelli’s move also raises questions about whether his political ideals are conflicting with his duties as attorney general. He earlier insisted that he would vigorously defend the current ballot laws against Perry’s lawsuit, as his job requires.
A judge hearing arguments on Perry’s lawsuit raised questions Thursday about Cuccinelli’s possible conflict of interest.
“The judge at least was concerned enough to call for justification by the attorney general’s office. Now, if there’s more, and he’s actively urging the General Assembly to take action, that makes it even more important to answer that question,” said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond. “You want full and vigorous representation by the state. You don’t want someone that isn’t a zealous advocate.”
A spokesman for Gov. Bob McDonnell said he would consider changes if they passed the legislature, but noted that the ballot restrictions shouldn’t have surprised anyone.
