Supreme Court rejects Cornel West's last-ditch bid for PA voter recognition
WASHINGTON − The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected independent presidential candidate Cornel West's request to make Pennsylvania polling sites tell voters they can write in his name on Election Day.
West argued Pennsylvania's secretary of state had improperly kept him off the ballot for not filing all the required paperwork and the only remedy at this late date is to make the state advertise his candidacy to voters.
West, a philosopher, activist, and author, is more likely to draw votes away from Vice President Kamala Harris than from former President Donald Trump.
Pennsylvania's top court backed the secretary of state's decision that West lacked the required affidavits for most of his presidential electors, and so was ineligible.
When West sought help from the federal courts, U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan said the rules appear to intentionally make it harder for third-party candidates to get on the ballot. But Ranjan said it was too close to the election to intervene.
An appeals court also rejected West's request for help.
Even though Pennsylvanians are already voting, West said he still has a constitutional right to be chosen by the millions of residents who will vote Tuesday.
The cost to the state of quickly posting notices about his candidacy at every polling station, he told the court, is a reasonable price for to pay for violating his rights "and dragging this dispute to the point where emergency relief is necessary."