Letters

Open elections

EDITOR: The primary victory of two LaRouche candidates shocked many people. However, following this "shock of recognition," the Democrats are scrambling to salvage whatever they can for the general election. Porter McNeil's article on reacting to the LaRouchies (May 1986) is a good discussion of the alternatives being considered by Adlai Stevenson. In addition to considering the ways to deal with the situation, it is important to investigate the underlying factors behind the LaRouche infiltration into the Democratic party. Beyond the obvious reasons of, as McNeil says, "... disunity in Chicago, a misinformed public, napping media and a lack of a party effort on behalf of the statewide ticket," a critical factor is ballot access. Originally, LaRouche attempted to run candidates through a third party, called the U.S. Labor Party. His platform was essentially the same as it is now. However, because of the incredibly difficult hurdles to third-party/independent ballot access and the incredibly minimal major party restrictions, in 1979 he dropped the third-party label and simply began running in Democratic primaries. This is the logical conclusion to restrictive ballot requirements. Citizens whose ideas lie outside the two major parties are forced to remain in those parties, even if those parties do not truly represent their views. Those citizens who honestly seek a third-party alternative are effectively locked out of our democratic process. Currently, the Coalition for Free and Open Elections, a national coalition of independents and minor parties, is waging court battles across the country to reduce state access requirements, while a U.S. House of Representatives bill (H.R. 2320) dealing with uniform standards for federal office ballot access is languishing in the House subcommittee on elections, headed by Rep. Al Swift (D-2, Wash.). The coalition, along with other groups, is demanding public hearings. Although it is argued that easy ballot access would create a confusing ballot, states with low access formulas, like New Jersey, have found that to be untrue. For more information on ballot access, write to: The Coalition for Free and Open Elections, P.O. Box 1885, Annapolis, MD 21404.

Alan M. Jacobson

State Committeeperson

Socialist Party of Illinois

6/July 1986/1llinois Issues