NV Green Party requests SCOTUS aid after state high court boots candidates from ballot

With Election Day fast approaching, battles over ballot access continue to be waged in courts across the country, with one coming to a head in Nevada.

As The Hill reports, the Green Party in Nevada is hoping the U.S. Supreme Court will intervene after the state’s high court booted its candidates — including presidential hopeful Jill Stein — from its general election ballot.

State high court excludes Stein

In a recent 5-2 ruling, the Nevada Supreme Court forced the removal of Green Party hopefuls from the November ballot due to technical issues with the signature collection practices used to establish their eligibility.

Previously, a lower court issued a decision in favor of Stein and other Green Party candidates, but after a appeal the state’s highest court held that the hopefuls “did not substantially comply with the requirements” for placement on the ballot.

Democrats lauded the state Supreme Court’s findings, as they had long hoped to prevent Stein from appearing on the ballot, assuming that she would pull votes from Democratic Party candidate Kamala Harris.

Because Nevada is considered by many to be a pivotal swing state this fall, all eyes will be on the emergency appeal Green Party officials there have now lodged with the U.S. Supreme Court.

SCOTUS assistance sought

Representing the Green Party in the matter is attorney Jay Sekulow, who has counted former President Donald Trump among his clients in the past.

Writing to the U.S. Supreme Court, Stein’s party argued, “The lower court’s action preventing Applicant ballot access was extraordinary, denying Applicant both due process and equal protection under the federal Constitution.”

“Given the timing of the lower court’s actions, emergency relief in this Court is the only relief available that prevents an ongoing and irreparable harm to Applicant’s exercise of one of Americans’ most sacred rights,” the filing continued.

Justice Elena Kagan, who is assigned to handle emergency matters emanating from several western states, including Nevada, received the emergency filing and has already set a Tuesday deadline for responses from other parties to the controversy.

Stein’s difficult week

Compounding Stein’s troubles last week was an awkward appearance on The Breakfast Club radio program, during which she committed multiple embarrassing gaffes while speaking with guest host Angela Rye, as Salon noted.

Stein was asked why she had suggested that the presidential election was “winnable” in all states, considering that as of now, her name is not even on the ballot in at least 13 of them, with a write-in option not even available in several of those.

The Green Party hopeful responded by saying, “We will be on the ballot for 95% of voters,” something she said was enough to see her through to a victory, but perhaps even more cringeworthy was Stein’s response to Rye’s straightforward question about how many individuals serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“What is it 600, some number?” Stein suggested, instead of the correct tally of 435, leaving countless listeners doubtful about her basic grasp of the American governmental structure, let alone her ability to be an effective occupant of the Oval Office.