"It’s a big club…and you ain’t in it" boasted George Carlin in his infamous bit.

Many people know that both the MNGOP and DFL are corrupt parties who cater to their bosses: Special Interests and wealthy donors. Across our country, we see that the battle every election season gives us less choices while the Uniparty consolidates more control. The parties don't want the grassroots having a say.

Now in Minnesota, Senator Jim Carlson (DFL - Eagan), along with seven House Democrats, are carrying a bill that would squash third parties in Minnesota and minimize the competition come election time. And they have some allies outside the Capitol Halls.

Failed MNGOP Chair David Hann and dishonest DFL Chair Ken Martin are teaming up to pass SF1827. This bill increases the requirement to be a “major party” in Minnesota from 5% in the last general election to 10%. This will most notably affect the two pot parties in Minnesota, The Legal Marijuana Now (LMN) Party and The Grassroots Legalize Cannabis (GLC) Party, as well as the Libertarians, Greens, and others.

This may sound small but this legislation would double the percentage of votes to have ballot access for two years! Stringent ballot access laws are a classic way that the duopoly stifles out third parties, leaving hurdles like requirements for petitions, scrupulous analysis of signatures, and short timelines to get the signatures.

David Hann seems to have the wrong read entirely on this situation, both strategically and principally. The LMN and GLC parties are much more likely to take votes from Democrats than Republicans and upon review of recent election results, this was the case. Principally, the GOP should be in favor of free speech/free association because in the free marketplace of ideas, the best solution will come on top.

The party of election integrity should be preventing the government from tilting the scales for one or more political parties, not the opposite! Hann’s pompous statement to the Senate Elections Committee suggests that having third parties on the ballot “confuses voters”. See his crony statement below:

Ken Martin also uses a lot of the same talking points as Hann in his statement. He suggests that too many candidates makes ballots unmanageable and that it doesn’t help Democracy. Isn’t the ability to vote for whichever candidate you want without any control or manipulation the very definition of Democracy? Martin is not supporting this bill to help Democracy, he is doing it to help the Democrats. See his explanation below:

Most voters love to see lots of options on the ballot. To people like David Hann and Ken Martin, it is a threat to their power. Hann and Martin being on the same page is equivalent to Mitch McConnell and Nancy Pelosi making a deal - it benefits them and it screws over everyone else. David Hann is particularly empty-skulled for getting behind this bill, it will undoubtedly hurt the GOP in future elections if passed. The two party system is increasingly unpopular in our country because of corruption like this.

Contact your Legislators and tell them to oppose SF1827! 

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