Congressman John Conyers is asking Secretary of State Ruth Johnson to put his name on the August Democratic primary ballot. The veteran lawmaker is asking the state’s top elections official to reverse a decision by the Wayne County clerk.
In the filing, Conyers' legal team says two nominating petition circulators should not have been disqualified for not being registered voters.
Conyers says they were registered, but, in fact, that shouldn’t matter because the requirement itself is unconstitutional, a violation of the First Amendment.
That is also the case Conyers is making in a federal lawsuit to get on the ballot. A hearing in that case is scheduled for next week. The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled being a registered voter cannot be required to circulate petitions.
Johnson has promised a decision by June 6, which is the deadline to finalize the August ballot.
