Supporters of presidential candidate Ralph Nader want to make sure he has every opportunity to get on the ballot in Texas.

They turned in more than 65,000 signatures to the Texas secretary of state Monday afternoon. The deadline for independents to turn in petitions was May 10. But the Nader campaign has filed a lawsuit challenging the Texas ballot access law.

Nader's field coordinator said he's confident the law will be ruled unconstitutional -- and he wants to make sure Nader can be on the ballot in time for November's election.

"Third parties are given 75 days to get 45,000 signatures. Independent candidates are only given 60 days to get a higher threshold. We believe that that's unconstitutional," Jason Kafoury, field coordinator for Nader for President, said.

Nader needs 64,076 signatures from registered voters that did not vote in the March 13, 2004 presidential primary to be on the ballot. According to the Vote Nadar Web site supporters have gathered more than 80,000. (Details on the ballot eligibility rules below.)

	Secretary of State letter
Statement from Geoff Connor regarding Independent Presidential candidate Ralph Nader's application for ballot access in Texas: "The provisions for ballot access by an Independent candidate for president, as established by the Texas Legislature, have been on the books for some 20 years in their current form. The minimum number of signatures required (64,076) for ballot access equals 1 percent of all votes cast for president in the last presidential general election and reflects the importance of such office. While Mr. Nader's campaign suggests that the state's deadline and required number of signatures is unconstitutional, there have been a number of successful efforts to gain ballot access in Texas as an Independent presidential candidate, including Ross Perot in 1992 and 1996 and Pat Buchanan in 2000. Further, the Texas process for independent or minor party candidate ballot access has been upheld by the courts on a number of occasions over the years. Repeat litigation is regrettable, but we will certainly defend state election law."

	Texas Election Code Section 192.032
§ 192.032. INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE'S ENTITLEMENT TO PLACE ON BALLOT. (a) To be entitled to a place on the general election ballot, an independent candidate for president of the United States must make an application for a place on the ballot. (b) An application must: (1) comply with Section 141.031, except that: . . (A) the application is not required to include a candidate's occupation, length of residence, or statement that the candidate is aware of the nepotism law; and . . (B) the application must contain the applicable information required by Section 141.031(4) with respect to both the presidential candidate and the running mate; (2) state the names and residence addresses of presidential elector candidates in a number equal to the number of presidential electors that federal law allocates to the state; and (3) be accompanied by: . . (A) a petition that satisfies the requirements prescribed by Section 141.062; and . . (B) written statements signed by the vice-presidential candidate and each of the presidential elector candidates indicating that each of them consents to be a candidate. . . (c) The application must be filed with the secretary of state not later than the second Monday in May of the presidential election year. . . (d) The minimum number of signatures that must appear on the petition is one percent of the total vote received in the state by all candidates for president in the most recent presidential general election. . . (e) A petition signer's voter registration is not required to be in any particular territory. . . (f) The following statement must appear at the top of each page of the petition: "I did not vote this year in a presidential primary election." . . (g) A signature on the petition is invalid if the signer: . . . . (1) signs the petition on or before the date of the presidential primary election in the presidential election year; or . . . . (2) voted in a presidential primary election during the presidential election year. . . (h) A candidate in a presidential primary election is ineligible to be an independent candidate for president or vice-president of the United States in the succeeding general election. Election Code, see Title 11 for more information.

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