Pennsylvania court rejects Cornel West’s bid to get on ballot and clears way for mail voting

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld a lower court ruling that rejected a bid to get independent presidential candidate Cornel West on the ballot for the November election in the battleground state.

The courts sided with the secretary of state’s office under Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro in rejecting West’s candidacy paperwork. The decision also sets in motion the process for counties to start printing, testing and sending out mail-in ballots to voters who requested one ahead of the Nov. 5 election.

“As soon as the court rules on that, we’ll certify the official list and then counties can complete their preparations to mail out ballots and to have voters, if they choose, go to a county election office to apply in person,” Secretary of State Al Schmidt said in an interview earlier Monday.

The court case had been among a raft of partisan legal maneuvering around third-party candidates, as backers of Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris had aimed to derail third-party candidates who might siphon away support — or to help others who might hurt their opponent.

In an unsigned one-page order, the state Supreme Court said it had affirmed the lower Commonwealth Court decision. In it, the court had agreed with the Schmidt’s office that West’s campaign lacked the required affidavits for 14 of West’s 19 presidential electors.

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