States warn Biden could miss ballot. Dems say exceptions have been made for GOP
Democratic officials are looking at their options after Republican secretaries of state in Ohio and Alabama warned them that President Biden might not appear on their ballots in November because of the timing of his expected nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
Publicly, the Biden campaign is expressing confidence that he will appear on the ballot in both states. But the situation has created new headaches for Democrats and stoked distrust with election officials over what has long been considered an apolitical process.
The chair of the Alabama Democratic Party, Randy Kelley, this week accused the GOP secretary of state, Wes Allen, of “partisan gamesmanship,” noting that accommodations had been made for Republicans in the past when their national conventions were later in the summer.
“While this issue with convention dates has occurred many times in the past, notably with the Alabama GOP in 2004, 2012, and 2020, it appears to only be a problem this year now that the Democrats’ convention is behind the deadline,” Kelley said in a statement.
Allen shot back in a statement, saying he “took an oath to administer Alabama elections in accordance with Alabama law, not to help run the Democratic party.” [Continue reading…]