On Monday, an Arizona judge rejected the Democratic Party’s lawsuit targeting the newly founded No Labels Party, which many Democrats fear will boost former President Donald Trump’s bid for a second term in the White House.
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes recognized No Labels, a centrist-leaning organization, as a political party earlier this year, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Katherine Cooper wrote in a decision that was issued on Monday, rejecting Democratic claims that there were deficiencies in the paperwork the group filed.
Cooper did, however, leave the door open for Democrats to refile the lawsuit with new arguments.
No Labels says it is seeking ballot access in many states and intends to run a bipartisan “unity ticket” for president “if the two parties select unreasonably divisive presidential nominees.”
Group leaders say they intend to stand down if there’s no realistic path to the White House. However, Democrats, as well as some anti-Trump Republicans, are concerned that a No Labels candidate wouldn’t win, but could tip the scales in favor of Trump or another Trump-like Republican by taking votes away from the eventual Democratic nominee, the Epoch Times reported.
No Labels has earned ballot access in Alaska, Colorado and Oregon, but in Arizona, a battleground state that President Joe Biden won in 2020 by a thin margin, less than half a percentage point, the stakes are particularly high.
Democrats argued that a signed petition to allow No Labels onto the Arizona ballot didn’t use the right phrasing, and could have misled individuals who signed it.
Democrats claimed that it should have said that “the signers thereof be recognized as a new political party,” but instead said, “the assigners of the attached petitions,” according to reports. The judge ultimately ruled that “there is no statutory requirement that the affidavit use these exact words.”
“This is an important win for American democracy and a testament to the power of over 41,000 Arizona voters who signed to give No Labels ballot access in Arizona,” No Labels leaders Benjamin Chavis Jr. and Jay Nixon said in a statement after the ruling.
When Arizona Democrats filed their lawsuit against the group, a spokesperson claimed that the new party is “not following the rules for political party recognition, while attempting to be placed on the ballot alongside actual, functioning political parties who do,” adding, “Arizonans deserve better and voters deserve to know who is behind this shadowy organization and what potentially nefarious agenda they are pushing.”
They alleged that the party hasn’t properly registered or reported its donors as a political party in Arizona, under claims that it failed to follow state law.
“In both cases, No Labels has refused to follow the rules that a political party must follow as they continue to try to game the system to advance their dark money special interests at the expense of Arizonans,” said a news release from Arizona Democrats last month. “Once again, [the Arizona Democratic Party] is acting to ensure that Arizonans are protected from these out of state dark money groups seeking to intervene in our state’s electoral process with no accountability or transparency.”
They separately filed a complaint with the secretary of state’s office, in a bid to force No Labels to disclose its donors or lose its status as a political party.
“We are, as always, evaluating all of our options and will continue to fight to protect Arizonans’ right to know who is bankrolling this organization as they inject themselves into our elections,” said Morgan Dick, executive director of the Arizona Democratic Party.
It’s currently unclear who might be tapped to lead the group as a candidate for 2024, but it plans to hold a nominating convention in April if it can earn the third-party ticket. Some have suggested that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) could be a contender, with the senator recently saying that he may leave the Democratic Party.
“I’m thinking seriously,” Manchin told radio host Hoppy Kercheval about leaving the Democratic Party this week. “I have to have peace of mind, basically. The brand has become so bad. The D brand and R brand … you’ve heard me say a million times, I am not a Washington Democrat.”
Manchin said he has “been thinking about that for quite some time” and wants to “make sure that my voice is truly an independent voice.” However, he hasn’t “made any decisions” about his future.
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) announced in December that she was leaving the Democratic Party in favor of becoming an independent candidate, which may lead to her being pitted against Republican Kari Lake and Rep. Reuben Gallego (D-AZ) for the Arizona Senate seat in 2024.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
