Ballot access are rules and procedures regulating the right to candidacy, the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots in elections in the United States. The jurisprudence of the right to candidacy and right to create a political party are less clear than voting rights in the United States. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has established in multiple cases that the federal constitution does not recognize a fundamental right to candidacy, and that state governments have a legitimate government interest in blocking "frivolous or fraudulent candidacies". As election processes are decentralized by Article I, Section 4, of the United States Constitution, ballot access laws are established and enforced by the states. As a result, ballot access processes may vary from one state to another. State access requirements for candidates generally pertain to personal qualities of a candidate, such as: minimum age, residency, and citizenship. Additionally, many states require prospective candidates to collect a specified number of qualified voters' signatures on petitions of support and mandate the payment of filing fees before granting access; ballot measures are similarly regulated. Each state also regulates how political parties qualify for automatic ballot access, and how those minor parties that do not can. Fundamental to democracy, topics related to ballot access are the subject of considerable debate in the United States.
A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be possible to win an election by winning a sufficient number of such write-in votes, which count equally as if the person were formally listed on the ballot.
The Grassroots—Legalize Cannabis Party (G—LC) is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota created by Oliver Steinberg in 2014 to oppose cannabis prohibition. G—LC Is a democratic socialist party with a background branching from the Grassroots Party established in 1986.
The United States Marijuana Party is a cannabis political party in the United States founded in 2002 by Loretta Nall specifically to end the war on drugs and to legalize cannabis. Their policies also include other socially libertarian positions. U.S. Marijuana Party candidates in Vermont have run campaigns as recently as 2016. The party has had local chapters in several other states, and has been affiliated with international cannabis political parties.
The Maine Green Independent Party is a state-level political party affiliated with the Green Party of the United States. It is the oldest state green party in the United States. It was founded following an informal meeting of 17 environmental advocates, including Bowdoin College professor John Rensenbrink and others in Augusta, Maine in January 1984. From 1994 to 2006, the party's gubernatorial nominees received between 6% and 10% of the vote.
The Nebraska Republican Party (NEGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in Nebraska. The party is led by chair Eric Underwood. Its headquarters is located in Lincoln. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling all of Nebraska's three U.S. House seats, both U.S. Senate seats, the state legislature, and the governorship.
The Nebraska Green Party is the state party organization for Nebraska of the Green Party of the United States. It held its first convention in August 2000 at a Unitarian church in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Cannabis political parties are generally single-issue parties that exist to oppose the laws against cannabis.
The Libertarian Party of Nebraska is the Nebraska affiliate of the Libertarian Party. The party is headed by chairperson Chris Childs.
The Legal Marijuana Now Party (LMN) is a political third party in the United States. The party's platform includes abolishing the Drug Enforcement Administration and legalizing hemp and marijuana. As of 2024, the party has ballot access in Minnesota and Nebraska.
The 2018 Nebraska gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the Governor of Nebraska, concurrently with the election of Nebraska's Class I U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various Nebraska and local elections. Incumbent Republican Governor Pete Ricketts won re-election to a second term.
The Montana Green Party is a state-level political party affiliated with the Green Party of the United States. It formed in 2001–2002 following Ralph Nader's run for president in 2000 as the Green Party nominee.
Mark Gerald Elworth Jr. is an American freelance musician, businessman, cannabis rights activist, perennial candidate for public office, and rockhound. Elworth was the Libertarian Party candidate for Governor of Nebraska in 2014 and was the Legal Marijuana Now candidate for Vice President of the United States in 2016.
Robert Barnett Evnen is an American attorney and Republican politician in the state of Nebraska. He is the 27th Secretary of State of Nebraska, serving since 2019.
Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota established in 1998 to oppose drug prohibition.
Krystal Gabel is an American cannabis rights activist, politician, and writer. Gabel, a candidate for governor of Nebraska in the 2018 election, at age 33 was the youngest of a record number of women who ran for governorships, nationally. In 2020, Gabel ran for Nebraska Public Service Commission in the Republican primary.
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Nebraska were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the three U.S. representatives from the state of Nebraska, one from each of the state's three congressional districts. The elections coincided with the Nebraska gubernatorial election, as well as other elections to the U.S. House of Representatives, elections to the U.S. Senate, and various state and local elections.
Cannabis political parties of the United States include the Grassroots—Legalize Cannabis Party, the Legal Marijuana Now Party, and the U.S. Marijuana Party. Also, both the Libertarian Party and the Green Party advocate for the legalization of marijuana.
Cannabis political parties of Minnesota include the Grassroots—Legalize Cannabis Party, the Independence Party, and the Legal Marijuana Now Party. Also, both the Libertarian Party and the Green Party advocate for the legalization of marijuana.
The 2024 Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now presidential primary took place on March 5, 2024, for the 2024 presidential election. The contest was held on Super Tuesday alongside primaries in 14 other states and territories. The race was the first Legal Marijuana Now Party presidential primary, and the first third party presidential primary run by the state of Minnesota since 1916. Krystal Gabel, an activist from Colorado, earned a plurality of votes in the election, despite having withdrawn from the race, asking people to not vote for her.
