News

Election ballots printed; more removals possible

by Jeremy Alford, LaPolitics

So far the state has had to remove 50 candidates from races around the state, including 10 who were disqualified through legal challenges and another 40 who have chosen to withdraw from their election contests.

The secretary of state’s office has finished printing the ballots for the Oct. 24 election, but there are still a handful of candidates who may see their names removed in the coming weeks.

So far the state has had to remove 50 candidates from races around the state, including 10 who were disqualified through legal challenges and another 40 who have chosen to withdraw from their election contests, according to Meg Casper, a spokesperson for the secretary of state.

“This is up to 8 percent of the entire field of qualified candidates, up from 5 percent in last year’s congressional races,” Casper said. “It became a real problem in 2014 and we’re not sure why we’re seeing more withdraws and disqualifications. The Ethics Administration has been challenging more candidates on their qualifications over the last couple years, though."

Of the 575 active races on the October ballot, 16 races have active legal challenges pending that could result in candidates being removed. There have been 43 challenges overall this cycle.

If a candidate is removed from a race in the coming weeks, there will be a posted notice located near voting booths explaining the situation and the impacted elections. The printed notices will first appear when early voting begins on Oct. 10.