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Political coalition amends ballot access petition The Journal Record Oct. 16th, 2007 by Tim Talley Associated Press http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recid=82725 OKLAHOMA CITY – A coalition of small political parties that wants easier access to Oklahoma election ballots filed an amended initiative petition Monday that supporters said will boost the measure’s chance of being approved by voters. The petition, supported by members of the Constitution, Libertarian and Green parties as well as independents, was amended one month after it was originally filed by proponents who said it would give Oklahoma voters more choice and give so-called third parties a better foothold to make changes in Oklahoma government. Jimmy Cook of Claremore, chairman of the Libertarian Party in Oklahoma and vice chairman of Oklahomans for Ballot Access Reform, said the group plans to notify the secretary of state that it will abandon the original petition filed on Sept. 14 although it had already began collecting signatures to get the measure on an election ballot. "We just want to make sure that everything is as it should be," Cook said. The new initiative petition, State Question 740, is the last of two amended petitions filed by the group on Monday. The second corrected a minor printing error that appeared in the first amended petition, Cook said. As amended, the petition would require political parties to receive 2 percent of the vote for any statewide office in any two consecutive general elections to retain official recognition. The original petition required political parties to get just 1 percent of the vote to retain recognition. Cook said the change was made based on legal advice and the voting record of other states where similar ballot access proposals have been decided. "There was historical precedent that 2 percent would look better on the petition," Cook said. He said the amended petition also changes the format of the original to make it easier to read and understand. The new petition retains the requirement that just 5,000 signatures be obtained for a lesser-known political party to receive official state recognition. Currently, a political party must obtain the signatures of registered voters equal to 5 percent of the total vote in the last gubernatorial or presidential election in order to gain official recognition and ballot access. That would have meant over 73,000 signatures last year. Political parties must also receive 10 percent of the vote in the next general election to retain recognition. Critics have said Oklahoma’s ballot access rules are the most restrictive in the nation. In 2004, Oklahomans had only two choices for president, a Democrat and a Republican, when 46 other states had four choices or more. The group will have 90 days to collect 74,117 signatures, the number required to get the petition on an election ballot. The signatures must be submitted to the secretary of state by Jan. 14, the first business day following the Jan. 12 deadline. Cook said the delay has allowed the group to raise enough money to successfully circulate the petition among voters. "We have enough money to accomplish this goal. At the beginning of the process we did not," Cook said. He said the group has collected about $90,000 so far. Cook said Libertarian Party Chairman William Redpath and former U.S. Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia, now a Libertarian, will attend an Oct. 23 fundraiser in Oklahoma City for the ballot access petition.