North Carolina House Bill 32 and Senate Bill 255, also known as the Electoral Freedom Act, passed the Senate Rules Committee on July 26. The bill has already passed the House, and may be considered an upcoming special session on September 12. North Carolina residents are encouraged to contact your State Senator and express your support for SB255.

Also, Richard Winger of Ballot Access News reports that the Fourth Circuit court will hear oral argument in Greene v Bartlett on September 22, which challenges the number of signatures required to get an independent candidate on the ballot for U.S. House, which is 4% of the number of registered voters as of early in the election year. The requirement is so strict, it has never been used by a candidate for U.S. House. North Carolina has had government-printed ballots since 1901 and never has any independent candidate for U.S. House appeared on a government-printed ballot.

A U.S. District Court had upheld the requirement, mentioning that in 2010, it appears that an independent candidate for U.S. House did collect enough signatures to be on the ballot, but then the candidate (who had not initiated the petition drive) refused to run. The SEIU had sponsored that petition drive. No evidence about that petition drive was ever presented as evidence in the case. It is possible the drive cost as much as $100,000, certainly a very high and discriminatory entry barrier for average citizens intending to run for Congress.