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1 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF WEST VIRGINIA BOB BARR, WAYNE A. ROOT, RICHARD KERR, SIMON McCLURE, and the LIBERTARIAN PARTY, Plaintiffs, VS. CIVIL ACTION NO. BETTY IRELAND, Secretary of State, Defendant. COMPLAINT For their claims for relief, plaintiffs aver as follows: JURISDICTION 1. This Court has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to 28 U.S.C and PARTIES 2. Plaintiff Bob Barr is a citizen and resident of the State of Georgia. 3. Plaintiff Wayne A. Root is a citizen and resident of the State of Nevada. Courthouse News Service 4. Plaintiff Richard Kerr is a citizen and resident of Monongalia County, We Virginia, and plaintiff Simon McClure is a citizen and resident of Harrison County, We Virginia. 5. Plaintiff Libertarian Party is an organization dedicated to the promotion of libertarian policies and ideology and to the election of candidates who support a libertarian platform. 1

2 6. Defendant Betty Ireland is Secretary of State for We Virginia and as such is charged with adminiering the ate's election laws, as set forth in We Virginia Code 3-1-1, et seq. Defendant is sued in her official capacity only. FACTS 7. Plaintiff Bob Barr is the Libertarian Party s candidate for President of the United States in 2008, and plaintiff Wayne Root is the Party s vice presidential nominee. 8. Pursuant to We Virginia Code and , plaintiffs Barr and Root have paid the filing fees and filed their declarations of candidacy to run in We Virginia for President and Vice President. 9. Plaintiffs Kerr and McClure are regiered voters who support plaintiffs Barr s and Root s candidacies, who intend to vote for plaintiffs Barr and Root, who promote libertarian policies, and who intend to support Libertarian Party candidates in future elections. 10. The Libertarian Party has had a presence in We Virginia since approximately 1976 and has run candidates in We Virginia elections since at lea The Libertarian Party intends to run Libertarian Party candidates in future We Virginia elections. 12. We Virginia Code defines a political party as a party whose gubernatorial candidate polled at lea one percent of the total number of votes ca for governor; a political party that meets that definition may place its nominees on the general election ballot for the four years following the gubernatorial qualifying election. 13. Because the Libertarian Party's candidate for governor in 2004 did not poll at lea one percent of the total number of votes ca for all candidates for governor in that election, the 2

3 Party and its candidates mu follow the procedures in We Virginia Code in order to appear on the general election ballot in To gain access to the 2008 general election ballot under , plaintiffs Barr and Root had to submit nominating certificates signed by enough regiered voters to equal not less than two percent of the vote ca for President in the 2004 general election, which amounted to 15,118 signatures. 15. According to We Virginia Code (a), the deadline for plaintiffs to submit their nominating certificates and signatures to the Secretary of State was Augu 1, As of Augu 1, 2008, plaintiffs had submitted nominating certificates endorsed by 13,171 signatures supporting plaintiffs Barr s and Root s candidacies. 17. Plaintiffs and others have continued to canvass for signatures on nominating certificates supporting plaintiffs Barr s and Root s candidacies and their inclusion on the 2008 general election ballot. 18. Plaintiffs anticipate that by Augu 18, 2008, they will have more than 15,118 valid signatures supporting plaintiffs Barr s and Root s candidacies and their inclusion on the 2008 general election ballot. 19. The Democratic Party s candidates for President and Vice President of the United States will not be eablished until Augu 28, The Republican Party s candidates for President and Vice President of the United States will not be eablished until September 4, The State lacks a sufficient reason for requiring minor political parties and candidates to submit their nominating certificates and signatures by Augu 1 while permitting the major 3

4 parties an additional month to identify their candidates. GROUNDS FOR RELIEF 22. We Virginia Code 's requirement that minor political parties and their candidates submit their nominating certificates for president and vice president by Augu 1 of a presidential election year, when the State permits major parties to have an additional month to identify their presidential candidates, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Conitution. 23. We Virginia Code 's requirements that minor political parties and their candidates mu submit their nominating certificates for president and vice president by Augu 1 of a presidential election year and that the certificates mu be endorsed by regiered voters equivalent to at lea two percent of the total number who voted for president in the preceding presidential election impose an unduly burdensome and unconitutional reraint on plaintiffs rights under the Fir and Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Conitution. 24. For the reasons ated in paragraphs 22 and 23, defendants have violated plaintiffs rights guaranteed to them by 42 U.S.C PRAYER FOR RELIEF Wherefore, plaintiffs reque the following relief: A. Preliminary and permanent injunctions (1) barring the defendant from enforcing the provision in We Virginia Code (a) that requires presidential nominating certificates to be filed by Augu 1 in a presidential election year, (2) ordering the defendant to accept and process all of plaintiffs nominating certificates and signatures submitted prior to September 4, 2008, and/or ordering the defendant to place the names of Bob Barr and Wayne A. Root on the general 4

5 election ballot as the Libertarian Party candidates for President and Vice President of the United States; B. A declaratory judgment holding that the provision in We Virginia Code (a) requiring presidential nominating certificates to be filed by Augu 1 in a presidential election year violates the Fir and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Conitution; C. A declaratory judgment holding that the requirement in We Virginia Code that minor party presidential candidates mu, to qualify for the general election ballot, submit signatures from regiered voters equal to or greater in number than two percent of the vote in the State in the la presidential election violates the Fir and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Conitution; D. An order awarding the plaintiffs their cos and reasonable attorney s fee; E. All other relief to which the Court shall deem the plaintiffs entitled. /s/ Robert M. Baress, Jr. Robert M. Baress ID. # 263 P.O. Box 1295 Morgantown, W.Va (304) Counsel for Plaintiffs CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I have mailed a copy of the foregoing Complaint to defendant s counsel, the Attorney General of We Virginia, the Honorable Darrell V. McGraw, Jr., and to Deputy th Attorney General Chriie Utt, on this the 13 of Augu, /s/ Robert M. Baress, Jr. (ID # 263) 5