Current:Home > InvestAlabama lawmakers approve legislation to ensure President Biden is on the November ballot-LoTradeCoin
Alabama lawmakers approve legislation to ensure President Biden is on the November ballot
View Date:2024-12-23 20:53:11
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers on Thursday gave final approval to legislation to ensure President Joe Biden will appear on the state’s November ballot, mirroring accommodations the state made four years ago for then-President Donald Trump.
The House of Representatives voted 93-0 for the legislation. It now goes to Republican Gov. Kay Ivey for her signature. Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said the governor will sign the bill into law.
“This is a great day in Alabama when in a bipartisan manner, we passed this legislation to ensure that President Joe Biden gains access to the ballot in Alabama,” Democratic state Sen. Merika Coleman, the bill’s sponsor, said. The Republican-dominated Alabama Legislature approved the bill without a dissenting vote.
The issue of Biden’s ballot access has arisen in Alabama and Ohio because the states’ early certification deadlines fall before the Democratic National Convention begins on Aug. 19. Republican secretaries of state warned that Biden might not appear on state ballots.
Alabama has one of the earliest candidate certification deadlines in the country, which has caused difficulties for whichever political party has the later convention date that year.
Trump faced the same issue in Alabama in 2020. The Republican-controlled Alabama Legislature passed legislation to change the certification deadline for the 2020 election to accommodate the date of the GOP convention.
“This is nothing new. We just need to fix this so the president can be on the ballot, just like our nominee can be on the ballot,” Republican House Speaker Pro Tem Chris Pringle said during the brief debate.
The Alabama legislation will defer the state’s certification deadline from 82 days before the general election to 74 days to accommodate the date of the Democrats’ nominating convention.
The Biden campaign has said they are confident the president will be on the ballot in all 50 states.
Litigation was almost a certainty if Alabama Republicans had declined to grant Biden ballot access after making accommodations in the past for GOP nominees. The Biden campaign asked Alabama to accept provisional certification, saying that has been done previously in Alabama and other states. Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen said he would not accept provisional certification because he didn’t think he had the authority to do so.
In Ohio, the state elections chief has said the Republican-led Legislature has until Thursday to approve an exemption to the state’s 90-day rule, which sets this year’s ballot deadline at Aug. 7. No bill appears to be forthcoming, but leaders of both parties haven’t entirely ruled one out. The state House and Senate both have voting sessions scheduled for Wednesday.
___
Associated Press writer Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, contributed to this report.
veryGood! (261)
Related
- The 15 quickest pickup trucks MotorTrend has ever tested
- Issey Miyake displays canvas of colors at Paris Fashion Week
- Christina Applegate, who has MS, gets standing ovation at Emmys
- Northern Ireland sees biggest strike in years as workers walk out over pay and political deadlock
- Cold case arrest: Florida man being held in decades-old Massachusetts double murder
- Inside Sofía Vergara’s Prosthetics Transformation Into Drug Lord Griselda Blanco
- Apple Watch users are losing a popular health app after court's ruling in patent case
- Over 580,000 beds are recalled after dozens of injuries
- Detroit-area police win appeal over liability in death of woman in custody
- Britain's King Charles III seeks treatment for enlarged prostate, Buckingham Palace says
Ranking
- Mechanic dies after being 'trapped' under Amazon delivery van at Florida-based center
- Reba McEntire, Post Malone and Andra Day to sing during Super Bowl pregame
- Blood-oxygen sensors to be removed from Apple Watches as company looks to avoid ban: Reports
- Swingers want you to know a secret. Swinging is not just about sex.
- Rare Alo Yoga Flash Sale: Don’t Miss 60% Off Deals With Styles as Low as $5
- Barking dog helps rescuers find missing hiker 170 feet below trail in Hawaii
- What If the Clean Energy Transition Costs Much Less Than We’ve Been Told?
- Galaxy S24, AI launch event: How to watch Samsung's 'Galaxy Unpacked 2024'
Recommendation
-
Ready-to-eat meat, poultry recalled over listeria risk: See list of affected products
-
Congress approves short-term funding bill to avoid shutdown, sending measure to Biden
-
Bills' David Edwards received major assist to get newborn home safely during snowstorm
-
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen backs anti-LGBTQ bill and tax cuts in state of the state address
-
'The Penguin' spoilers! Colin Farrell spills on that 'dark' finale episode
-
A Common Fishing Practice Called Bottom Trawling Releases Significant Amounts of CO2 Into Earth’s Atmosphere
-
'I just wish I knew where they were': How an online cult is tied to 6 disappearances
-
Canadian world champion pole vaulter Shawn Barber dies at 29 from medical complications