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Asa Gordon

Oral arguments for Green leader’s Electoral College Mal-Apportionment civil action (Gordon v. Biden), earlier set for Jan. 14, have been canceled

Green Party supports Asa Gordon’s action, calling it a demand for fair elections, voters’ rights, and racial justice

Oral arguments for a major voting rights civil action filed by Green Party leader Asa Gordon, originally scheduled to take place in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (No. 09-5142) on Thursday, January 14, 2010, has been canceled.

Mr. Gordon can be contacted at 202 635-7926.  Documents, links, and other materials related to the action are available online (http://www.electors.us).  Mr. Gordon’s prepared oral argument, with an excellent brief summary of the civil action’s defense of the constitutional right to cast an equal and effective vote, is now posted online (http://mapxiv2usc6.free0host.com/ORAL-RAP.pdf).

According to a court order issued on January 11,

The court concludes, on its own motion, that oral argument will not assist the court in this case.  Accordingly, the court will dispose of the appeal without oral argument on the basis of the record and the presentations in the briefs.  See Fed. R. App. 34(a)(2); D.C. Cir. Rule 34(j). 

Gordon v. Biden seeks enforcement of the US Constitution’s ‘Mal-Apportionment Penalty’ (14th Amendment, Section 2), which mandates a reduction of a state’s presidential electors and congressional representatives (“the basis of representation therein shall be reduced”) if “the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States… is denied… or in any way abridged.”

The civil action, Gordon v. Biden (formerly Gordon v. Cheney), addresses the antidemocratic mal-apportionment of Electoral College votes, voter dilution by race and/or party affiliation with the popular vote misrepresented by the winner-take-all system of allocating electoral votes.

Mr. Gordon (http://www.gp.org/speakers/detail.php?ID=29), chair of the DC Statehood Green Party’s Electoral College Task Force and executive director of the Douglass Institute of Government, filed his civil action to protect the voting rights of presidential electors and the voters they represent in the US District Court (1:08-cv-01294) on July 28, 2008. His reply brief (http://mapxiv2usc6.free0host.com/APPELLANT%27S%20REPLY%20BRIEF_map.pdf) was filed with the court on November 6 and final brief submitted on November 27 (http://mapxiv2usc6.free0host.com/APPELLANT%27S%20FINAL%20BRIEF.pdf).

The Green Party has supported Mr. Gordon’s civil action, calling it a demand for fair elections, for the right of every voter to have his or her vote counted in a national election, and for racial justice.  For more information, see the Green Party’s December 21, 2009 press release announcing the originally scheduled oral arguments (http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=275).

MORE INFORMATION

Green Party press releases
• “Oral arguments for Green leader’s Electoral College Mal-Apportionment civil action (Gordon v. Biden) to be heard in court on Jan. 14, 2010” (December 21, 2009) http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=275
• “Greens launch effort against Electoral College manipulation of presidential elections” (August 5, 2008) http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=85
• “Greens: Enforce 14th Amendment’s ‘Right to Vote’ Provision” (October 18, 2004) http://www.gp.org/press/pr_10_18_04.html

Filed under: 3rd party, Ballot issues, election, elections, grassroots democracy, Green Party, News Tagged: | electoral college