Independent presidential candidate Cornel West will be on the ballot in North Carolina, a federal judge ruled Monday, siding with a group of West supporters who challenged a state board of elections decision to keep West’s party off the ballot.
The Justice for All Party (JFA) was denied ballot access in North Carolina at a state board of elections meeting last month, with the board finding that the party misled voters into signing its ballot access petition.
Judge Terrence Boyle ruled Monday that the board’s reasoning was flawed, finding that it did not have proper justification to deny the Justice for All Party of access. He issued a preliminary injunction in the case, allowing West on the ballot as the case moves forward.
Boyle said the board failed to use the required “narrow tailoring” to determine whether the party’s petition signatures were invalid, instead writing them off altogether based on its own “flawed” internal analysis.
“Narrow tailoring requires a scalpel; the Board used a blunt instrument,” he wrote. “The Board effectively disenfranchised over 17,000 North Carolina voters who signed petitions to certify JFA as a new political party on flawed, highly suspect grounds.”
JFA access was first challenged by Clear Choice Action, a Democratic-aligned group which has filed challenges to third-party ballot access nationwide. The suit by West supporters alleges the Democratic members of the board were overly reliant on misleading evidence provided by the group to reject its application.
North Carolina JFA co-Chair Italo Medelius celebrated the ruling Tuesday.
“This is a monumental day for our party and for all supporters of a diverse political representation,” he said in a statement. “The court’s decision to allow our candidates on the ballot is not just a win for JFA but a victory for every North Carolinian who believes in the power of choice and the strength of democracy.”
The North Carolina State Board of Elections told The Hill that its attorneys are reviewing the decision.
Updated at 2:28 p.m.