Ralph Nader 2004 presidential campaign

Ralph Nader is running for the U.S. Presidency in the 2004 election, as he has in several previous elections. In 1996 and 2000, Nader was the candidate of the Green Party; in this election, however, he is running as an independent candidate.

Nader has won the endorsement of the Reform Party USA, and will run as the Reform candidate in several states. However, many former state Reform Parties are controlled by a far-right splinter group, the America First Party, which will not endorse Nader. In some of these states Nader will be on the ballot as an independent candidate, while in a number of others, Nader has been unable to meet the requirements for ballot access, and will not be on the ballot at all.

Nader on the ballot

As of September 28, 2004, Nader will be on the ballot in 31 states and Washington, DC, and off the ballot in seven states (California, Georgia, Indiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Virginia). He may qualify for ballot access in the remaining 12 states before the election.

In several states, elections officials may have placed Nader on the ballot inappropriately, and are being sued to remove him from the ballot. In a number of states, Nader's candidacy has become a point of dispute in the struggle between the Democratic and Republican Parties, with Republicans supporting Nader on the principle that he leeches votes from the Democrats, and Democrats making allegations of illegal conduct.

The following list, based on information from Nader's campaign website, summarizes whether Nader is on a state's ballot, and whether that status is currently disputed, by Nader or his opponents:

Alabama: on the ballot Alaska: on the ballot Arizona: disputed -- off the ballot Arkansas: disputed -- on the ballot [1] California: off the ballot Colorado: disputed -- on the ballot Columbia: on the ballot Connecticut: on the ballot Delaware: on the ballot Florida: disputed -- on the ballot [2] Georgia: off the ballot Hawaii: disputed -- off the ballot Idaho: disputed -- off the ballot Iowa: disputed -- outcome unknown Illinois: disputed -- off the ballot Indiana: off the ballot Iowa: on the ballot Kansas: on the ballot Kentucky: disputed -- on the ballot Louisiana: on the ballot Maine: disputed -- ruled on the ballot Maryland: disputed -- on the ballot Massachusetts: off the ballot Michigan: disputed -- on the ballot Minnesota: on the ballot Mississippi: disputed -- on the ballot Missouri: off the ballot Montana: on the ballot

Nebraska: disputed -- on the ballot Nevada: disputed -- on the ballot New Hampshire: disputed -- on the ballot New Jersey: on the ballot New Mexico: on the ballot New York: on the ballot North Carolina: disputed -- off the ballot North Dakota: on the ballot Ohio: disputed -- off the ballot [3] Oklahoma: off the ballot Oregon: disputed -- off the ballot (Kucera v. Bradbury) [4] Pennsylvania: disputed -- off the ballot, (but on the absentee ballot sent out Oct 29) Rhode Island: on the ballot South Carolina: on the ballot South Dakota: on the ballot Tennessee: on the ballot Texas: disputed -- off the ballot Utah: on the ballot Vermont: unknown Virginia: off the ballot [5] Washington: on the ballot Wisconsin: disputed -- ruled off the ballot West Virginia: disputed -- on the ballot Wyoming: on the ballot

Of the swing states, Nader is off the ballot in 2, disputed off in 5, disputed unknown in 1, disputed on in 9, and on in 5.

In some states where Nader's name is not printed on the ballot, write-in votes for the Nader/Camejo ticket are still permitted and will be counted.

External links

• http://www.ballot-access.org/2004/electoral.html
• http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=14011
• http://www.votenader.org/ballot_access/index.php?cid=109
• http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z55F31279 (Ralph Nader interview October 4, 2004)
• http://www.votenader.org (map)