By Jim Siegel

The Columbus Dispatch Friday November 8, 2013 5:05 PM

The Libertarian Party of Ohio has filed a federal lawsuit this afternoon arguing that the law signed by Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday setting requirements for minor party recognition is unconstitutional.

Mark Brown, the lead attorney for the lawsuit, said the timing of the laws enactment it takes effect Feb. 5, the day of the 2014 candidate filing deadline and the law blocking minor parties from holding a primary election next year will be the key arguments.

The lawsuits timing argument cites federal 1st and 14th Amendment violations, Brown said, It also makes a state constitutional argument under Article 5, Section 7, which says that all nominations for elective state, district, county and municipal offices shall be made at direct primary elections or by petition as provided by law.

Minor party candidates have already started collecting signatures for various races under current law, which essentially leaves it up to the secretary of state to determine which minor parties are recognized. The federal courts struck down Ohios prior minor party recognition law in 2006.

Basically what Ohio has done is retroactively taken ballot access away from the (Libertarian Party) and its candidates, Brown said. You can pass valid retroactive legislation, but you have to be careful about it, and especially in the First Amendment or the voting context, its strongly frowned upon by the federal courts.

While the courts may decide that the law can be applied in the future, Brown said, he hopes they will find it cannot apply next year, after so many candidates already have been gathering signatures under current law.

The lawsuit is not expected to challenge the actual signature or vote thresholds set in the law. Whether those should apply after the 2014 election is a separate issue, Brown said.

Under the law, minor parties next year would have to collect about 28,000 signatures 0.5 percent of the votes cast in the last presidential election to form and be recognized on the ballot. At least 500 of those signatures must come from each of 8 congressional districts.

Read the rest here:

Libertarians challenge new Ohio minor-party law